Purpose of the National Park Management Plan

The sections that follow are for everyone who has an interest in and cares about the National Park.

It’s a Plan for:

• The whole National Park
• National Park Authority members, staff and volunteers
• Partners. The Plan can only be achieved if we work together to deliver it. This involves a wide range of partners who all have an important role to play and, in some cases, a statutory obligation to the area, including relevant authorities (see below)
• Exmoor’s land and property owners and managers, farmers and foresters, without whose support and co-operation the special qualities of the National Park would not be maintained and enhanced
• The people who live and work here: Exmoor’s local communities and businesses
• The nation. The Plan sets out what is important about Exmoor and what is being done to conserve and enhance the National Park as a nationally significant landscape and to ensure that the health and wellbeing benefits from accessing and enjoying the National Park are available to all

Seventy years after the creation of National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (collectively known as Protected Landscapes), the Government commissioned an independent review led by Julian Glover, to consider whether the protections for Protected Landscapes are still fit for purpose, what might be done better, what changes will help and whether the definitions and systems in place were still valid. The report from this Landscapes Review identified 27 recommendations around a renewed mission to enhance nature; connecting everyone with Protected Landscapes; supporting people who live and work there; adding new designations; and enabling new ways of working through changes in legislation, governance, and funding models. The overall conclusion was that “We want our national landscapes to work together with big ambitions so they are happier, healthier, greener, more beautiful and open to everyone.”

The Government’s response to the Landscapes Review set out a new vision for Protected Landscapes and the role that they should play today as: ‘A coherent national network of beautiful, nature-rich spaces that all parts of society can easily access and enjoy. Protected landscapes will support thriving local communities and economies, improve our public health and wellbeing, drive forward nature recovery, and build our resilience to climate change.’

This was accompanied by some significant changes including a strengthened legal duty for relevant authorities to help to further National Park purposes (see below), a greater emphasis on National Park Management Plans, and the creation of a new Protected Landscapes Partnership to strengthen collaborative working at a national level.

The Government’s response also highlighted the role of Protected Landscapes in helping to deliver national and international targets on tackling climate change, recovering nature, and enhancing beauty, heritage and engagement with the natural environment. In 2024, the Government produced the Protected Landscapes Targets and Outcomes Framework (PLTOF), identifying the Environment Improvement Plan goals that Protected Landscape bodies and other relevant authorities and partners must prioritise. This Partnership Plan sets out how Exmoor National Park will contribute to the delivery of these national targets. The national targets are highlighted in bold under the relevant aims and objectives of the Plan.

Government has also set out the expectation thatProtected Landscapes are at the heart of delivering the UK government’s commitment under the Global Biodiversity Framework agreed by Leaders at the UN Biodiversity Summit in 2022 to protect at least 30% of land and sea by 2030 (30 by 30). “Our Protected Landscapes will provide the backbone to 30by30 in England, contributing towards the target where they are effectively managed and delivering in-situ conservation. We recognise that we can, and must, go further within Protected Landscapes than other areas to meet our national environmental targets, including 30by30. This will be driven by the Protected Landscapes Targets and Outcomes Framework, as well as further action to ensure that these special places are wilder and greener. Through their management plans, existing structures and strong partnerships, Protected Landscapes organisations can also play a convening role to champion, identify and support areas that meet, or have potential to meet, the 30by30 criteria”.

Protected Landscape bodies and their partnerships are being encouraged to maximise their potential contributions to 30by30, including the protection and effective management of existing, restored and new wildlife rich habitat.  “The UK is calling for high ambition and momentum to reach our international targets to protect and restore the natural world.”

The Labour government elected in 2024 has also set out its ambitions for National Parks to be greener, wilder and more accessible to all: “Labour introduced National Parks 75 years ago, and introduced the Rights of Way Act that secured public access and preserved natural beauty. This Labour Government is committed to empowering Protected Landscapes to become greener, wilder and more accessible to all. We are actively considering options to ensure Protected Landscapes bodies like National Park Authorities have the tools and powers they need to deliver for people and nature, including through regulation and guidance.”

Relevant authorities[1] have a legal duty[2] to help further National Park purposes when making decisions or carrying out activities relating to or affecting land within the National Park, including helping to develop and deliver National Park Management Plans[3]. This duty also applies to proposals outside the designated area (the ‘setting’ of the National Park) but impacting on its statutory purposes. If it appears that there is a conflict between the two statutory purposes, they must attach greater weight to the purpose of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of the National Park. Relevant authorities must show they have fulfilled this duty.

Government guidance on this strengthened duty[4] states that it is an active duty, not a passive one, and is outcomes focused, not just a process. Any relevant authority must take all reasonable steps to explore how the statutory purposes of the Protected Landscape can be furthered, demonstrating how they have done this. They must also avoid harm to the statutory purposes of designation, going beyond mitigation and like for like measures and replacement. Any proposed measures should align with and help to deliver the aims and objectives of the statutory National Park Management Plan. If it is not practicable or feasible to take measures to further the National Park purposes, the relevant authority should provide evidence to show why not. The National Park Authority should be consulted. As part of the duty to further National Park purposes, relevant authorities should consider the effects of their decisions on the setting[5] of the National Park, for example in relation to development, land use change, natural resource use, and other activities[6].

Public authorities[7] also have a duty under section 102 of the Environment Act 2021[8] to consider and take action to conserve and enhance biodiversity.  Government guidance on complying with the duty[9] states that public bodies should consider Protected Landscapes as part of the duty, particularly if they have functions within or close to the designation, including helping to develop and deliver National Park Management Plans, and making improvements to nature in National Parks.

• It’s based on evidence from the State of the Park Report[1]
• It’s informed by a public opinion survey[2]
• It’s been developed with the National Park Authority Board, a Steering Group of Partners, and the Partnership Plan groups[3]
• It’s been discussed at online and in-person workshops
• It has included a particular focus on engaging with hard-to-reach groups, including younger people, in line with our commitment to engage with and inspire a wider diversity of communities, recognising that Exmoor National Park is for everyone
• The effect of the Plan on social, environmental and economic objectives have been tested through a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), and the effects on Exmoor’s Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) have been considered through a Habitats Regulation Assessment[4]
• It’s gone through public consultation and been amended in the light of comments received.

• To bring together a wide range of people and organisations around a set of common goals to deliver National Park purposes
• To co-ordinate action amongst partners and develop projects where we can work together on issues of shared interest
• As the basis for the National Park Authority Corporate Plan, guiding our work priorities and resource allocation
• To develop National Park Authority policies and decision making
• To draw in funding to deliver the outcomes identified
• To monitor progress against the Vision, Objectives and Targets

• It’s the single most important document for the National Park
• It sits within the context of international and national legislation, policy and strategy and does not override any other specific legislative requirements or consent processes
• It is accompanied by the State of the Park Report which examines the issues and trends affecting the National Park’s special qualities, and provides the evidence base for the Partnership Plan
• It links to other plans and strategies relevant to Exmoor such as the Local Nature Recovery Strategies, the climate mitigation and adaptation plans developed in Devon and Somerset, the Rural Enterprise Exmoor Vision and so on
• It provides the framework for the Local Plan which sets out the policies for determining planning applications. The Partnership Plan is a material consideration in planning decisions and the Local Plan is a means of delivering aspects of the Partnership Plan – for example through affordable housing provision and good design principles
• It is implemented through separate Delivery Plans