Recreation Management Strategy for the New Forest
The New Forest is the smallest but busiest National Park in England, with an estimated 13.5 million visitors days a year and more visits per square kilometre than any other national park in the UK. At the same time over 50% of the National Park is covered by one or more international designations for biodiversity, and the Park offers a haven for tranquillity, all the more valued because of the high density of population that surrounds it.
The New Forest therefore presents a challenge for recreation management – to marry these recreational demands with the purposes of the National Park designation in ways that are mutually reinforcing and maximise visitor enjoyment.
LUC was commissioned by the New Forest National Park Authority to prepare a Recreation Management Strategy for the National Park. This is the first document produced for a national park seeking to achieve a balance between the two statutory national park purposes. Using a clear line of evidence, it provides a strategy to direct future recreation activities in the park over the next twenty or so years.
The Strategy will guide and influence recreation and spatial planning policy and implementation across the whole of the National Park and adjoining areas, helping the National Park Authority deliver national park purposes, promote understanding and enjoyment of the Park and sensitively manage recreational pressures.
The Strategy focused on outdoor recreation and was primarily concerned with the principal recreational pursuits in the Park, namely walking (including dog walking), horse riding, on and off road cycling and camping and caravanning. Consultations included a forum event for over 100 people, more focused workshops and one-to-one meetings.
This was a rewarding piece of work as it made giant steps to achieving a commitment from all key partners to act responsibility in the future.
