Natural England is an important organisation that helps to protect England’s natural environment and manage access to the countryside, making it a key player in rural tourism. This article explains who Natural England are and what they do.
- Who are Natural England?
- What do Natural England do?
- What are their responsibilities?
- What else does Natural England do?
- National Parks and National Landscapes
- National Nature Reserves and Sites of Special Scientific Interest
- What is the Mosaic Approach?
- What is Outdoors for All?
- Natural England: To conclude
Who are Natural England?
Natural England is an Executive Non-Departmental Public Body. Although it is an independent organisation, it is sponsored by and accountable to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).
Natural England was formed in 2006 under the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006, through the merger of three former public bodies: the Countryside Agency (landscape, access and recreation functions), the Rural Development Service and English Nature. It is funded mainly by Defra.
What do Natural England do?
Their purpose is to ‘protect and improve England’s natural environment and encourage people to enjoy and get involved in their surroundings’. Natural England cover the whole of the country and work with people such as farmers, scientists, researchers, town and country planners, and the general public on a range of initiatives. They aim to create a better natural environment covering urban, country and coastal landscapes – as well as all of the animals, plants and other organisms that live alongside us.
Natural England is the government’s advisor on the natural environment. Their advice, grounded in science, shows how best to safeguard England’s natural areas so that everybody can benefit from them now and in the future. The work they do helps to ensure that the land and sea are used sustainably in order for people, and the nature itself, to thrive. Natural England want to see nature continue to adapt so that future generations are able to enjoy it too.
What are their responsibilities?
Natural England’s main responsibilities include:
- Promoting nature conservation and protecting biodiversity
- Conserving and enhancing the landscape
- Securing the provision and improvement of facilities for the study, understanding and enjoyment of the natural environment
- Promoting access to the countryside and open spaces and encouraging open-air recreation
- Contributing in other ways to social and economic well-being through management of the natural environment, eg changes to wildlife licensing to improve flexibility for developers
What else does Natural England do?
Natural England also plays a role in England’s agri-environment schemes, which pay farmers and land managers to protect and improve the environment. Following Brexit, these are being replaced by the Environmental Land Management schemes, including the Sustainable Farming Incentive and Countryside Stewardship, which are administered by the Rural Payments Agency with advice from Natural England. Tackling the decline in biodiversity is a central part of its work.
Their involvement in the licensing of protected species across England is also very important. It takes many forms, and includes the following:
- Giving permission to undertake various activities that are deemed necessary in order to protect public health and safety.
- Protecting our food supply (for example, allowing the control of birds that eat crops).
- Allowing for building developments that impact on protected wildlife (such as HS2).
- General conservation purposes, such as predator control.
Natural England aims to increase opportunities for everyone to enjoy the wonders of the natural world. As set out in the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 they exist so “that the natural environment is conserved, enhanced and managed for the benefit of present and future generations, thereby contributing to sustainable development”. Whenever you get to explore some of England’s natural beauty – from the hills of the Lake District to coasts of Cornwall – it is likely that Natural England have had some hand in protecting and conserving it for your enjoyment.
Natural England is involved in many aspects of England’s outdoors. It designates National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (now known as National Landscapes); manages many National Nature Reserves and oversees Sites of Special Scientific Interest; is creating the King Charles III England Coast Path around the entire English coastline; and has led initiatives such as the Mosaic Approach and Outdoors for All, which aim to ensure that current and future generations can access and enjoy England’s outdoor spaces.
National Parks and National Landscapes
The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 was a turning point for protecting England’s landscapes. Natural England works alongside other organisations to protect and conserve England’s 10 national parks and 34 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs), which were renamed National Landscapes in November 2023.
These national parks and AONBs present a huge opportunity in terms of nature recovery. Accounting for around a quarter of England’s land area, they are incredibly important for protecting England’s natural and cultural capital.
The 10 National Parks in England
- Broads
- Dartmoor
- Exmoor
- Lake District
- New Forest
- Northumberland
- North York Moors
- Peak District
- South Downs
- Yorkshire Dales
The 34 AONBs (National Landscapes) in England
- Arnside & Silverdale
- Blackdown Hills
- Cannock Chase
- Chichester Harbour
- Chilterns
- Cornwall
- Cotswolds
- Cranborne Chase
- Dedham Vale
- Dorset
- East Devon
- Forest of Bowland
- High Weald
- Howardian Hills
- Isle of Wight
- Isles of Scilly
- Kent Downs
- Lincolnshire Wolds
- Malvern Hills
- Mendip Hills
- Nidderdale
- North Devon
- Norfolk Coast
- North Pennines
- North Wessex Downs
- Northumberland Coast
- Quantock Hills
- Shropshire Hills
- Solway Coast
- South Devon
- Suffolk Coast and Heaths
- Surrey Hills
- Tamar Valley
- Wye Valley (shared with Wales)
National Nature Reserves and Sites of Special Scientific Interest
Natural England is also responsible for National Nature Reserves (NNRs) and Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). It manages many NNRs directly, with others managed by approved bodies such as the National Trust, the Wildlife Trusts and the RSPB. NNRs are designated as key places for wildlife and natural features, and many are free to visit with paths and visitor facilities. England has more than 200 NNRs, including Kingley Vale in West Sussex, Old Winchester Hill in Hampshire and Ainsdale Sand Dunes in Merseyside. In 2023, the government launched the King’s Series of National Nature Reserves to create or extend 25 NNRs over five years.
Sites of Special Scientific Interest are protected areas found throughout the UK, with more than 4,000 in England. There are biological SSSIs and geological SSSIs. For biological SSSIs, Natural England works to maintain the natural and traditional management processes that allowed the habitat to develop and survive, such as grazing chalk grassland or heathland. Geological SSSIs are selected to represent important features of Earth science, and Natural England protects these sites so that they can be studied in the future.
What is the Mosaic Approach?
The Mosaic Approach is a way of integrating the requirements of species into general habitat management. This ensures that plants and wildlife always have access to the places they need to live and reproduce. Most species require various different elements within one site, or within a wider space, in order to complete their life cycle. Many of these (small patches of bare ground, tall flower-rich vegetation, or scattered trees) are often absent from English outdoor spaces. They are even absent from some of our most important wildlife sites – this has contributed to serious declines in various species, meaning some are now close to extinction.
Developed by Natural England, the Mosaic Approach allows for these elements to be introduced into various landscapes to allow these species to thrive. As biodiversity is so important, this integrated and large-scale approach is an effective way of ensuring that conservation targets can be met. It complements the pre-existing species-specific approach to conserving and protecting biodiversity.
The approach aims to increase structural diversity and ensure that species, and their habitats, are more resilient to climate and other environmental changes.
What is Outdoors for All?
In 2008, Natural England launched Outdoors for All. A 2005 report entitled ‘Diversity Review’ showed that for some, access to the outdoors and our natural environment was somewhat lacking. Whether that was for recreation and fun, or for studying and other purposes, there seemed to be certain demographics that needed support when it came to accessing the outdoors.
They are:
- Those with physical disabilities
- Those with learning disabilities
- Those living with mental health illness
- Those from Asian and minority ethnic communities
- Those living in deprived areas
- Those who are young or elderly
Outdoors for All was Natural England’s response to this report. They also support other organisations in various projects aiming to get more of these under-represented groups to come to, and enjoy, natural areas
To do this, they bring together service providers and service users – allowing people to access activities they might not be able to access otherwise. Natural England has put time into researching the benefits of outdoor-access, as well as why barriers exist for certain groups. Outdoors for All has helped to improve existing access and create new opportunities, allowed for partnerships to be built and secure funding to be put in place.
Nature is of vast importance to the country and its communities, and everyone deserves to have access to it. More recently, the government’s Environmental Improvement Plan (2023) set a goal for everyone in England to live within a 15-minute walk of a green or blue space.
Natural England: To conclude
Natural England is an important organisation in the UK. It plays a key role in protecting England’s natural environment, managing access to the countryside and supporting the rural tourism industry.
Natural England: FAQs
Below are answers to some of the most common questions about Natural England.
What is Natural England?
Natural England is the government’s adviser on the natural environment in England. It is an executive non-departmental public body sponsored by Defra and was formed in 2006.
What does Natural England do?
Natural England protects and improves England’s natural environment, designates protected landscapes, manages and oversees nature reserves and SSSIs, licenses activities affecting protected species and promotes public access to nature.
Does Natural England manage national parks?
Natural England designates national parks and National Landscapes, but each national park is run by its own national park authority. Natural England works with these authorities to conserve them.
How many national parks are there in England?
There are 10 national parks in England, including the Lake District, Peak District, Dartmoor and the South Downs.
What is the King Charles III England Coast Path?
It is a long-distance walking route being created by Natural England around the whole of the English coastline, giving the public access to the coast.
Further reading
If you found this article helpful, the following posts may also be of interest:
- What is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty?
- What is rural tourism?
- Heritage coasts
- What is a staycation?
- What is sustainable tourism?
- What is a UNESCO Geopark?
