LUC has recently completed a project to develop a Tranquillity & Place resource on behalf of Natural Resources Wales (NRW).

NRW commissioned LUC to deliver a nationally consistent Tranquillity & Place resource to use as an evidence base to inform policy intent, practice and provision for well-being benefits. The tool uses mapped ‘themes’ that merge to produce an overall relative Tranquillity & Place map.

Our study involved creating:

• A Wales-wide dataset and maps of tranquillity.
• A set of maps and zonal statistics, against various geographical contexts.
• A methodology and findings report.
• An ArcGIS model.
• An interactive ‘story map’ summarising the results.

Two stakeholder workshops supported the study during the development phases. This ensured a diverse range of perspectives informed the development of tranquillity indicators.

The importance of tranquillity as a landscape asset and important cultural service drove this project. Highly valued tranquillity contributes to landscape value and identity. Tranquillity also contributes to health, well-being, spiritual benefit and quality of life. But it has limited resilience, and subtle changes in noise, visual intrusion and light pollution may have marked effects on natural settings and tranquillity.

The key findings of the study are:

• 5 km of Wales is in the top 20% for relative abundance, perception or experience of nature, natural landscapes and greenspaces.
• 3,931.7 km of Wales is in the top 20% for relative freedom from intrusive visual disturbance and human influence.
• 1,389.7 km of Wales is in the top 20% of visually tranquil areas.
• 67% of Wales is in the top 3 most visually tranquil categories.
• 9% of Wales’ urban areas are in the top 3 visually tranquil categories.

Get in touch with Diana Manson to learn more.