Consultation to launch over planned National Park in north east Wales

A public consultation over plans to create a new National Park in north Wales will launch in October.

Welsh Government has commissioned Natural Resources Wales (NRW), as the Designating Authority in Wales, to evaluate the case for a new National Park based on the existing Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

If the plans go ahead it will be the first National Park established in Wales since 1957.

NRW have now announced that a 10-week public consultation will run between the 7 October and 16 December 2024.

The public consultation events will be an opportunity to learn more about the project and evidence gathered to date, ask questions of the team and share feedback on the draft boundary map referred to as the Candidate Area Map.

Locally drop-in events will take place on:

• Wednesday 16 October: 1pm-7pm at the Ceiriog Centre, New Road in Glyn Ceiriog (LL20 7HE)
• Friday 8 November: 3pm-7pm Wrexham Memorial Hall, Bodhyfryd (LL12 7AG)
• Wednesday 10 December: 3pm-7pm Llangollen Town Hall, Castle Street (LL20 8NU)

Public online events

• Monday 14 October 6pm – 7:30pm (Microsoft Teams)
• Tuesday 12 November 6pm – 7:30pm (Microsoft Teams)
• Thursday 12 December 6pm – 7:30pm (Microsoft Teams)

Ash Pearce, Programme Manager in NRW’s Designated Landscapes Programme team said: “While we have a statutory procedure to follow, we want to ensure that this is an inclusive process and that people have the opportunity to share their views on the proposals.

“Early engagement has given us a much clearer picture of the issues, hopes and concerns of the local people and stakeholders. We have identified eleven themes that underline both risks and opportunities for the area.

“These reflect concerns about over tourism and the impact on housing, but also the hopes for better management, responsible access, conservation and nature’s recovery.

“If a new National Park is established, then it must be able to manage the risks and take advantage of the opportunities available, for the betterment of nature, people, and communities.”

“We have amended the study area in response to local feedback and in the past year, appointed three separate independent consultants to help us develop the evidence that will inform our recommendation.

“As a result of this work, we now have Candidate Area map that we want to share with the public.

“We encourage anyone interested, to attend one of the events listed below and complete our questionnaire after viewing the summary of the evidence.”

People are encouraged to either drop by at an in-person event or email the project team at [email protected] to sign up to an online event. People will only need to attend one event as the information shared will be the same for each.