86-568: Brecon Beacons National Park , officially named Bannau Brycheiniog National Park ( Welsh pronunciation ), is a national park in Wales. It is named after the Brecon Beacons ( Welsh : Bannau Brycheiniog ), the mountain range at its centre. The national park includes the highest mountain in South Wales, Pen y Fan , which has an elevation of 886 metres (2,907 ft). The national park has
172-405: A "huge blow". Most of the national park is bare, grassy moorland grazed by Welsh mountain ponies and Welsh mountain sheep , with scattered forestry plantations , and pasture in the valleys. Common ravens , red kites , peregrine falcons , northern wheatears , ring ouzels , and the rare merlin breeds in the park. The Brecon Beacons National Park was established in 1957, the third of
258-650: A 1945 white paper on national parks was produced as part of the Labour Party's planned post-war reconstruction, leading in 1949 to the passing of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act . In England and Wales, as in Scotland, designation as a national park means that the area has been identified as being of importance to the national heritage and as such is worthy of special protection and attention. Unlike
344-682: A bilingual nation as it did not treat English and Welsh languages equally, and ambassadors of the park were not consulted on the name change. A digital marketer dismissed the campaigner's argument, stating tourism would not be impacted, and the national park authority stated they are prioritising Welsh names going forward. National parks of the United Kingdom National parks of the United Kingdom ( Welsh : parciau cenedlaethol ; Scottish Gaelic : pàircean nàiseanta ) are 15 areas of relatively undeveloped and scenic landscape across
430-545: A continuous massif of high ground above 300 metres (1000'). The A470 road forms the approximate boundary between the central Beacons and Fforest Fawr. The highest peak of the Black Mountain is Fan Brycheiniog , at 802.5 metres (2,633 ft). There are notable waterfalls in this area, including the 90-foot (27 m) Henrhyd Falls and the Ystradfellte falls to the south of Fforest Fawr. The Ogof Ffynnon Ddu cave system
516-456: A national park in the 1970s but the proposal was thought to be administratively too difficult because the area was administered by five different county councils . The Norfolk and Suffolk Broads was designated through its own Act of Parliament in 1988 , gaining status equivalent to that of a national park. The Broads in East Anglia are not in the strictest sense a national park, being run by
602-447: A number of problems. The national funding offered to national park authorities is partly in recognition of the extra difficulties created in dealing with these conflicts. The United Kingdom has a number of other designated landscape areas besides its national parks. Most similar to the parks are Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty which differ in part because of their more limited opportunities for extensive outdoor recreation. Dartmoor,
688-460: A paragraph on Brecknockshire, John Leland 's 1536–1539 Itinerary notes that: Blak Montayne is most famose, for he strecchith, as I have lerned, his rootes on one side within a iiii. or v. myles of Monemuth , and on the other side as nere to Cairmerdin ( Carmarthen ). Though this be al one montayne, yet many partes of him have sundry names. Leland ascribes the name "Banne Brekeniauc" to the hills surrounding "Artures Hille" (Pen-y-Fan), also calling
774-418: A separately constituted Broads Authority set up by a special Act of Parliament in 1988 and with a structure in which conservation is subordinate to navigational concerns (see Sandford Principle below), but it is generally regarded as being "equivalent to" a national park. Separate legislation was passed in Scotland, namely the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 , and from this two Scottish national parks,
860-567: A significant role during the Industrial Revolution as various raw materials including limestone, silica sand and ironstone were quarried for transport southwards to the furnaces of the industrialising South Wales Valleys . The Brecon Beacons Mountain Centre was opened in 1966 to help visitors understand and enjoy the area. This western half of the national park gained European and global status in 2005 as Fforest Fawr Geopark , which includes
946-514: A slightly smaller area than it does presently. A 'Variation Order' was made in June 1966 to extend it by about 4.5 square miles (12 km) at its southeastern extremity. West of the canal, the boundary had previously been drawn along the boundary between the (then) administrative parishes of Llanover and Goytre. The park is managed by Bannau Brycheiniog National Park Authority, a special purpose local authority with responsibilities to conserve and enhance
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#17328592069001032-524: A total area of 1,344 square kilometres (519 sq mi). The Brecon Beacons and Fforest Fawr uplands form the central section of the park. To the east are the Black Mountains , which extend beyond the national park boundary into England, and to the west is the similarly named but distinct Black Mountain range. These ranges share much of the same basic geology, the southerly dip of the rock strata leading to north-facing escarpments. The highest peak of
1118-495: Is a hill (elevation 2100 feet or 640m) in the Black Mountains in Herefordshire , England at grid reference SO275348 . It rises just west of the village of Craswall , near the border with Wales . The southern part of the ridge leading to the summit is a rocky knife-edge giving excellent views to either side. The northern part crosses a peat bog on gently sloping land at the edge of the east facing escarpment. The lower part
1204-533: Is also a standards committee with three members. Between 1995 and 2020 the park authority had 24 members, sixteen appointed by the local authorities and eight by the government. Outdoor activities in Brecon Beacons National Park include walking , cycling , mountain biking and horse riding , as well as sailing , windsurfing , canoeing , fishing , rock climbing , hang-gliding , caravanning , camping and caving . A long-distance cycling route,
1290-486: Is first attested in the sixteenth century, and 'Brecon Beacons' first occurs in the eighteenth century as "Brecknock Beacons". Bannau Brycheiniog derives from the Welsh bannau , "peaks", and Brycheiniog , the name of an early medieval kingdom which covered the area. The English name is derived from the Welsh one; in the eleventh century the town of Brecon is recorded as 'Brecheniauc', which became "Brecknock" and "Brecon". In
1376-498: Is located two miles (3 km) north of Merthyr Tydfil town centre. Mountain rescue in south Wales is provided by five volunteer groups, with the police having overall command. In serious situations they were historically aided by Royal Navy or Royal Air Force helicopters from RM Chivenor or RAF Valley , but since 2015 this task has been performed by Bristow Helicopters on behalf of HM Coastguard . The five groups are: The groups are funded primarily by donations. Their work
1462-451: Is merit in variety and with the wide diversity of landscape which is available in England and Wales, it would be wrong to confine the selection of National Parks to the more rugged areas of mountain and moorland, and to exclude other districts which, though of less outstanding grandeur and wildness, have their own distinctive beauty and a high recreational value. The National Parks and Access to
1548-595: Is no national park in the southern Midlands . The Cairngorms National Park , at 4,528 km (1,748 sq mi), is the largest of the national parks. Outside the Scottish Highlands the largest is the Lake District National Park , which, at 2,292 square kilometres (885 sq mi), is the largest National Park in England and the second largest in the United Kingdom. Snowdonia National Park , at 2,142 square kilometres (827 sq mi),
1634-538: Is not restricted to mountain rescue – they frequently assist the police in their search for missing or vulnerable people in the community. The Brecon Beacons are used for training members of the UK armed forces and military reservists . The Army ’s Infantry Battle School is located at Brecon, and the Special Air Service (SAS) and Special Boat Service use the area to test the fitness of applicants. An exercise unique to
1720-442: Is on the southwestern edge of Fforest Fawr. Numerous town and community councils operate within these areas and include the town councils for Brecon and Hay on Wye and the community councils for Cefn-coed-y-cymmer , Llanfihangel Cwmdu with Bwlch and Cathedine , Llangattock , Llangors , Llanthony , Llywel , Pontsticill , Pontsarn and Vaynor , Talybont-on-Usk , Trallong , Trecastle and Ystradfellte . The geology of
1806-505: Is restricted to public rights of way and permissive paths . (Under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 there is a right of access for walkers to most but not all uncultivated areas in England and Wales.) National parks are a devolved matter, so each of the countries of the United Kingdom has its own policies and arrangements for them. The national parks of Scotland and those of England and Wales are governed by separate laws:
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#17328592069001892-502: Is signposted at a road junction north of Longtown, and is shown on most Ordnance Survey maps of the area. The parking area lies to the north of the Little Back Hill. The access roads are however, narrow and all single track, although there are numerous passing places. The walk from the car park along the ridge to the trig point which marks the top of the hill is clear and easily followed in good weather, with two large cairns beyond
1978-432: Is the largest national park in Wales and the fourth largest in the United Kingdom. The smallest national park in England and Wales, and in the United Kingdom, is The Broads , at 303 square kilometres (117 sq mi). The total area of the national parks in England and Wales is about 16,267 square kilometres (6,281 sq mi), for an average of 1,251 square kilometres but a median of 1,344 square kilometres. In
2064-411: Is to be preserved. The national park authorities also have a duty to foster the economic and social wellbeing of communities in pursuit of these purposes. Funding for national parks is complex, but the full cost of each park authority is funded from central government funds. In the past this was partly paid for by local authorities and refunded to them from the government to varying degrees. In 2003/2004
2150-480: Is very similar to the main ridge of the Skirrid mountain near Abergavenny , owing to their similar underlying geology. The Black Hill is known locally as the 'Cat's Back,' as viewed from Herefordshire it looks like a crouching cat about to pounce. There is a very small parking (room for about 6 cars) and picnic area at the southern tip of the ridge, at the far end of minor roads leading from Longtown, Herefordshire . It
2236-725: The Black Mountains in the east, the Brecon Beacons and Fforest Fawr uplands in the centre, and the Black Mountain in the west. The park is entirely within Wales and therefore excludes the Olchon Valley and Black Hill , which are part of the Black Mountains but in the English county of Herefordshire . The central Brecon Beacons range comprises six main peaks, which from west to east are: Corn Du, 873 metres (2,864 ft); Pen y Fan,
2322-576: The Brecon Mountain Railway . The railway is a 1 ft 11 + 3 ⁄ 4 in ( 603 mm ) narrow gauge tourist railway on the south side of the Brecon Beacons. It climbs northwards from Pant along the full length of the Pontsticill Reservoir (also called 'Taf Fechan' reservoir by Welsh Water ) and continues past the adjoining Pentwyn Reservoir to Torpantau railway station . The railway's starting point at Pant
2408-634: The Cairngorms and Loch Lomond and The Trossachs , were created. The New Forest , which includes the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and old-growth forest in the heavily populated south east of England, was designated as a national park on 1 March 2005. On 31 March 2009 it was announced that the South Downs would be designated a national park; the South Downs National Park came into effect on 31 March 2010. Of
2494-656: The Caledonian orogeny . Further faulting and folding, particularly in the south of the park is associated with the Variscan orogeny . The area was inhabited during the Neolithic and the succeeding Bronze Age , the most obvious legacy of the latter being the numerous burial cairns which adorn the hills of the centre and west of the National Park. There are remnants of round barrows on Fan Brycheiniog, Pen y Fan and Corn Du. The former
2580-681: The Environment Act 1995 , each English and Welsh national park has been managed by its own national park authority, a special-purpose local authority , since April 1997. Previously, all but the Peak District and the Lake District were governed by county councils . The Peak District and the Lake District , the first two national parks to be designated, were under the control of planning boards that were independent of county councils. Similar national park authorities have also been established for
2666-510: The Mourne Mountains . If established, it would stretch from Carlingford Lough to Newcastle and Slieve Croob . National park authorities are the strategic and local planning authorities for their areas, so that the local district or unitary councils do not exercise planning control in an area covered by a national park. Consequently, they have to perform all the duties of a local planning authority . They are responsible for maintaining
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2752-454: The National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 in Scotland and the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 for England and Wales. The Environment Act 1995 defines the role of national parks in England and Wales as being: The Broads differs from the twelve national parks in England & Wales in having a third purpose that carries equal weight, that of: The Scottish national parks have two further statutory purposes: Following
2838-531: The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 , and in England and Wales any new national park is designated under this Act, and must be confirmed by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs . The 1949 Act came about after a prolonged campaign for public access to the countryside in the United Kingdom with its roots in the Industrial Revolution. The first 'freedom to roam' bill
2924-581: The National Trust . In cases where there may be conflict between the two purposes of designation, the first (to conserve and enhance the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of the National Park) must take precedence under the Sandford Principle . This principle was given statutory force by section 62 of the Environment Act 1995 , although there are no explicit provisions as to how wildlife
3010-552: The Offa's Dyke Path along the Hatterall Ridge , and then by descent into the valley of the river Olchon. There is a direct route from the ridge which follows the river Olchon via an old bridleway , and leads on to the minor road which circles the valley. It is marked by a small cairn by the main path, and the path crosses at one point a rocky landslip by the side of the stream. The ridge is common land and thus open to all both on and off
3096-618: The Taff Trail , passes over the Beacons on its way from Brecon to Cardiff , and in 2005 the first walk to span the entire length of the park was opened. The 99-mile (159 km) route, called the Beacons Way , runs from Abergavenny via The Skirrid ( Ysgyryd Fawr ) in the east and ends in the village of Llangadog in Carmarthenshire in the west. A railway with narrow gauge trains is run by
3182-629: The cities was also considered important. The Peak District , site of the Kinder Scout trespass, was designated the first national park in April 1951 under the Clement Attlee led Labour administration . This was followed in the same year by the designations of three more national parks; the Lake District, Snowdonia and Dartmoor. By the end of the decade the national park family had increased to ten with
3268-514: The local development framework — the spatial planning guide for their area. They also grant planning consent for development, within the constraints of the Framework. This gives them very strong direct control over residential and industrial development, and the design of buildings and other structures; as well as strategic matters such as mineral extraction. The national park authorities' planning powers vary only slightly from other authorities, but
3354-541: The Black Hill, where structural details such as rock jointing, can be seen more closely. There are numerous different species of bird in the area, and they include the red kite , common buzzard , kestrel , carrion crow , common raven and skylark . The red kite was previously restricted to this and adjoining areas in South Wales such as Mynydd Mallaen , but has since been introduced widely in southern Britain, such as
3440-584: The Black Mountain, the historic extent of Fforest Fawr, and much of the Brecon Beacons range and surrounding lowlands. The entire national park achieved the status of being an International Dark Sky Reserve in February 2013. In 2006 and 2007, controversy surrounded the government decision to build the South Wales Gas Pipeline through the park, the National Park Authority calling the decision
3526-468: The Black Mountains is Waun Fach (811 metres (2,661 ft)), and Fan Brycheiniog (802.5 metres (2,633 ft)) is the highest of the Black Mountain. The park was founded in 1957 and is the third and most recently designated national park in Wales , after Snowdonia (Eryri) and the Pembrokeshire Coast . It is visited by approximately 4.4 million people each year. The name Bannau Brycheiniog
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3612-542: The Brecons Beacons range from the national park, the range is sometimes called the "Central Beacons". In April 2023, the national park changed its name to Bannau Brycheiniog in English , abandoning the previous English name Brecon Beacons . The area covered by the national park stretches from Llandeilo in the west to Hay-on-Wye in the northeast and Pontypool in the southeast, covering 519 square miles (1,340 km). It principally consists of three mountain ranges;
3698-529: The Countryside Act 1949 was passed with all party support. The first ten national parks were designated as such in the 1950s under the Act in mostly poor-quality agricultural upland . Much of the land was still owned by individual landowners, often private estates, but there was also property owned by public bodies such as the Crown , or charities which allow and encourage access such as the National Trust . Accessibility from
3784-532: The Countryside Act 1949 . The idea for a form of national parks was first proposed in the United States in the 1860s, where national parks were established to protect wilderness areas such as Yosemite . This model has been used in many other countries since, but not in the United Kingdom. After thousands of years of human integration into the landscape, Britain lacks any substantial areas of wilderness. Furthermore, those areas of natural beauty so cherished by
3870-722: The English and Welsh national parks that were originally proposed, two remain undesignated: the Cambrian Mountains and Cornish Coast. Of the twelve national parks in England and Wales, four are in the North of England, two in the Southwest, one in the North Midlands, two (the most recently designated) in the South and three in Wales. They cover 10.7 per cent of England and 19.9 per cent of Wales. They touch only sixteen English counties and there
3956-774: The Lake District – is wholly coincident with a national park whilst a part of the Blaenavon Industrial Landscape World Heritage Site falls within the Brecon Beacons National Park and parts of the Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd and of the Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales fall within Snowdonia National Park. Download coordinates as: Black Hill (Herefordshire) The Black Hill (also known as Crib y Garth )
4042-679: The Lake District, North York Moors and the Yorkshire Dales all abut AONBs and in addition the coasts of Exmoor and the North York Moors coincide with heritage coasts . All the Parks contain in varying numbers Sites of Special Scientific Interest and national nature reserves . A part of the Brecon Beacons National Park is also designated as one of the UNESCO Global Geoparks . Of the various World Heritage Sites in England and Wales , one –
4128-486: The Peak District National Park the estimate in 2004 for visitor spending is £185 million, which supports over 3,400 jobs, representing 27% of total employment in the national park. The national park authorities have two roles: to conserve and enhance the park, and to promote its use by visitors. These two objectives cause frequent conflicts between the needs of different groups of people. It is estimated that
4214-568: The Pembrokeshire Coast, North York Moors, Yorkshire Dales, Exmoor, Northumberland and Brecon Beacons national parks all being designated. Other areas were also considered: for example, parts of the coast of Cornwall were considered as a possible national park in the 1950s but were thought to be too disparate to form a single coherent national park and were eventually designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) instead. The north Pennines were also considered for designation as
4300-634: The Romans came to Wales in 43 CE, they stationed more than 600 soldiers in the area. Y Gaer , near the town of Brecon was their main base. During the Norman Conquest many castles were erected throughout the park, including Carreg Cennen Castle . Brecon Castle is of Norman origin. There are many old tracks which were used over the centuries by drovers to take their cattle and geese to market in England. The drovers brought back gorse seed , which they sowed to provide food for their sheep . The area played
4386-614: The Scottish parks under separate legislation. Slightly over half the members of each national park authority are appointees from the principal local authorities covered by the park; the remainder are appointed by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (in England) or the Welsh Ministers (in Wales), some to represent local parish or community councils, others to represent
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#17328592069004472-522: The United Kingdom the total increases to 22,660 square kilometres (average 1511 km ). The most-visited national park is the Lake District, with 15.8 million visitors in 2009, although by visitor days the South Downs at 39 million compares to 23.1 million for the Lake District. There are currently no national parks in Northern Ireland though there have been controversial moves to establish one in
4558-557: The Welsh Ministers. All fifteen United Kingdom national parks are represented by the Association of National Park Authorities , which exists to provide the park authorities with a single voice when dealing with government and its agencies. The Campaign for National Parks (formerly Council for National Parks) is a charity that works to protect and enhance the national parks of England and Wales. National parks were first designated under
4644-633: The area is the ' Fan dance ', which takes place on Pen y Fan. In July 2013 three soldiers died from overheating or heatstroke on an SAS selection exercise. An army captain had been found dead on Corn Du earlier in the year after training in freezing weather for the SAS. On 17 April 2023 it was announced that the National Park had officially adopted the name Bannau Brycheiniog in both Welsh and English. The new official English name became Bannau Brycheiniog National Park , or "the Bannau" for short. The change took effect on
4730-590: The areas now designated as national parks have been occupied by humans since the Stone Age , at least 5,000 years ago and in some cases much earlier. Before the 19th century relatively wild, remote areas were often seen simply as uncivilised and dangerous. In 1725 Daniel Defoe described the High Peak as "the most desolate, wild and abandoned country in all England". However, by the early 19th century, romantic poets such as Byron , Coleridge and Wordsworth wrote about
4816-423: The cause of public access in the political arena. In 1931 Christopher Addison (later Lord Addison) chaired a government committee that proposed a 'National Park Authority' to choose areas for designation as national parks. A system of national reserves and nature sanctuaries was proposed: (i) to safeguard areas of exceptional natural interest against (a) disorderly development and (b) spoliation; (ii) to improve
4902-402: The country. Despite their name, they are quite different from national parks in many other countries, which are usually owned and managed by governments as protected community resources, and which do not usually include permanent human communities. In the United Kingdom, an area designated as a national park may include substantial settlements and human land uses that are often integral parts of
4988-420: The criteria for designating suitable areas: The essential requirements of a National Park are that it should have great natural beauty, a high value for open-air recreation and substantial continuous extent. Further, the distribution of selected areas should as far as practicable be such that at least one of them is quickly accessible from each of the main centres of population in England and Wales . Lastly there
5074-492: The decision, with its leader Jane Dodds comparing it to movements in New Zealand. Conservative MP James Evans described the move as "not a priority" for locals and raised concerns over cost, and the local Conservative MP, Fay Jones , argued that the English name could have been kept. Upon the news of the name change the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak stated "I'm going to keep calling it the Brecon Beacons, and I would imagine most people will do that too." Catherine Mealing-Jones,
5160-425: The establishment of national parks as part of the post-war reconstruction of the UK. A report by John Dower , secretary of the Standing Committee on National Parks, to the Minister of Town and Country Planning in 1945 was followed in 1947 by a Government committee, this time chaired by Sir Arthur Hobhouse , which prepared legislation for national parks, and proposed twelve national parks. Sir Arthur had this to say on
5246-407: The highest peak, 886 metres (2,907 ft); Cribyn , 795 metres (2,608 ft); Fan y Bîg , 719 metres (2,359 ft); Bwlch y Ddwyallt , 754 metres (2,474 ft); and Waun Rydd , 769 metres (2,523 ft). These summits form a long ridge , and the sections joining the first four form a horseshoe shape around the head of the Taf Fechan , which flows away to the southeast. To the northeast of
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#17328592069005332-405: The inspirational beauty of the "untamed" countryside. Wordsworth described the English Lake District as a "sort of national property in which every man has a right and interest who has an eye to perceive and a heart to enjoy" in 1810. This early vision, based in the Picturesque movement, took over a century, and much controversy, to take legal form in the UK with the National Parks and Access to
5418-405: The instability of the hill's steep flanks, resulting in small landslips at various points on the ridge. There are numerous other landslips of a similar nature on the nearby hills, especially that at Black Darren and Red Darren at the edge of the Hatterall Ridge to the south west, where the great size of the slippage dominates the side of the mountain. There are many rock tables on the ridge of
5504-507: The landscape. Land within national parks remains largely in private ownership. These parks are therefore not "national parks" according to the internationally accepted standard of the IUCN but they are areas of outstanding landscape where planning controls are a little more restrictive than elsewhere. Within the United Kingdom there are fifteen national parks of which ten are in England, three in Wales , two in Scotland , and none in Northern Ireland. An estimated 110 million people visit
5590-419: The means of access for pedestrians to areas of natural beauty; and (iii) to promote measures for the protection of flora and fauna . However, no further action was taken after the intervention of the 1931 General Election . The voluntary Standing Committee on National Parks first met on 26 May 1936 to put the case to the government for national parks in the UK. After World War II, the Labour Party proposed
5676-432: The model adopted in many other countries, such as the US and Germany, this does not mean the area is owned by the state. National parks in the United Kingdom may include substantial settlements and human land uses which are often integral parts of the landscape, and within a national park there are many landowners including public bodies and private individuals. Archaeological evidence from prehistoric Britain shows that
5762-404: The national interest. The Broads Authority also has members appointed by Natural England , Great Yarmouth Port Authority and the Environment Agency . The national park authorities and the Broads Authority are covered by regulations similar to those that apply to local councils. The national park authority for each park addresses the stated aim in partnership with other organisations, such as
5848-400: The national park consists of a thick succession of sedimentary rocks laid down from the late Ordovician through the Silurian and Devonian to the late Carboniferous period. The rock sequence most closely associated with the park is the Old Red Sandstone from which most of its mountains are formed. The older parts of the succession, in the northwest, were folded and faulted during
5934-405: The national parks of England and Wales each year. Recreation and tourism bring visitors and funds into the parks, to sustain their conservation efforts, and support the local population through jobs and businesses. However, these visitors also bring problems, such as erosion and traffic congestion , and conflicts over the use of the parks' resources. Access to cultivated land in England and Wales
6020-584: The national parks of England and Wales receive 110 million visitors each year. Most of the time it is possible to achieve both the original two purposes by good management. Occasionally a situation arises where access for the public is in direct conflict with conservation. Following the ethos of the Sandford Principle , the Environment Act 1995 sets down how a priority may be established between conservation and recreational use. Similar provision has been made for Scottish national parks. Although recreation and tourism bring many benefits to an area, they can also bring
6106-474: The natural beauty of the park, aid visitors' enjoyment of the park, and support the economic and social well-being of local communities. The National Park Authority has 18 members, twelve are appointed by the area's local authorities and six by the Welsh Government. Of the local authority members six are appointed by Powys County Council, and one each by the councils of Blaenau Gwent, Carmarthenshire, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Rhondda Cynon Taf, and Torfaen. There
6192-531: The park authorities received around £35.5 million of central government funding. The UK's national parks are members of National Parks UK, which works to promote them, and to facilitate training and development for staff of all the parks. Natural England is the statutory body responsible for designating new national parks in England, subject to approval by the Secretary of State; Natural Resources Wales designates new national parks in Wales, subject to approval by
6278-439: The park authority's CEO, stated: "the name Brecon Beacons doesn't make any sense – the translation Brecon Beacons doesn't really mean anything in Welsh", adding that "a massive carbon-burning brazier is not a good look for an environmental organisation". Mealing-Jones admitted that people can refer to the park by either name, and that the change "isn't compulsory", but hoped the emphasis on the Welsh name would encourage people to use
6364-402: The policies and their interpretation are stricter than elsewhere. This is supported and encouraged by the government who regard: Tourism is an important part of the economy of the regions which contain national parks. Through attractions, shops and accommodation, visitors provide an income and a livelihood to local employers and farmers. This income provides jobs for the park. For example, within
6450-602: The range the "Banne Hilles". The term "Brecknock Beacons" was used in the eighteenth century and referred to the area around Pen y Fan, which was itself was sometimes called 'the (Brecknock) Beacon'. For instance, Emanuel Bowen's A New and accurate map of South Wales (1729) labels the peak as 'The Vann or Brecknock Beacon', John Clark's 1794 General View of the Agriculture of the County of Brecknock refers to 'the Vann, or Brecknock Beacon,
6536-527: The ridge, interspersed with long parallel spurs, are four cirques (Welsh: cwm ) or four round-headed valleys, which from west to east these are Cwm Sere, Cwm Cynwyn, Cwm Oergwm and Cwm Cwareli. The Black Mountains in the east are clearly separated from the central Beacons range by the Usk valley between Brecon and Abergavenny. Waun Fach (811 metres (2,661 ft)) is the highest mountain in this range. The Brecon Beacons range, Fforest Fawr, and Black Mountain form
6622-512: The rocky outcrops along the Cat's Back. There is a small pool in the peat near the summit, its size depending on local rainfall. The path can be continued on a well marked and visible track to Hay Bluff , a prominent peak above Hay-on-Wye and the Gospel Pass . The path crosses several peat bogs and there is a small pool near the summit itself. Return can be made along the ridge or by a diversion along
6708-466: The romantic poets were often only maintained and managed in their existing state by human activity, usually agriculture. By the early 1930s increasing public interest in the countryside, coupled with the growing and newly mobile urban population, was generating increasing friction between those seeking access to the countryside and landowners. Alongside of direct action trespasses, such as the mass trespass of Kinder Scout , several voluntary bodies took up
6794-415: The same day, the 66th anniversary of the park's designation. The authority stated that the change was to promote the area's culture and heritage, as well as part of a wider overhaul of how the park is managed and to address environmental issues , such as climate change , and removing references to carbon-emitting beacons. The plan for the park to become net zero by 2035 and to address environmental concerns
6880-523: The several paths on the hill. It is grazed by sheep, ponies and cattle. The distinctive shape of this Old Red Sandstone hill comprises a long ridge oriented roughly north-west/south-east. The upper slopes of the hill are composed of Devonian period sandstones, assigned to the Senni Formation. They overlie weaker mudstones of the St Maughans Formation - a situation which has contributed to
6966-403: The term. She stated: "We’d always had the name Bannau Brycheiniog as the Welsh translation and [...] we wanted to be celebrating Welsh people, Welsh culture, Welsh food, Welsh farming". In May 2023 more than 50 local businesses in the national park campaigned for the "Brecon Beacons" name be restored alongside the Welsh name as a dual name. The campaigners say the decision did not respect Wales as
7052-580: The three Welsh parks after Snowdonia in 1951 and the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park in 1952. It covers an area of 519 square miles (1,340 km), which is much larger than the Brecon Beacons range. Over half of the park is in the south of Powys ; the remainder of the park is split between northwestern Monmouthshire , eastern Carmarthenshire , northern Rhondda Cynon Taf and Merthyr Tydfil , and very small areas of Blaenau Gwent , and Torfaen . The Park as designated in 1957 covered
7138-665: The undisputed sovereign of all the mountains in South Wales', and an 1839 tithe map of Cantref parish labels the mountain simply 'Beacon'. A slightly wider definition was used in 1809 by the Breconshire historian Theophilus Jones , who wrote that 'of the lofty summits of the Brecknock Beacons, that most southwards is the lowest, and the other two nearly of a height, they are sometimes called Cader Arthur or Arthur's chair'. This implies that "Brecknock Beacons" referred to only three summits, including Pen y Fan and Corn Du. To distinguish
7224-588: Was excavated in 2002–4 and the ashes in the central cist dated to about 2000 BCE using radiocarbon dating . A wreath of meadowsweet was probably placed in the burial. Over twenty hillforts were established in the area during the Iron Age . The largest, and indeed the largest in South Wales , were the pair of forts atop y Garn Goch near Bethlehem, Carmarthenshire – y Gaer Fawr and y Gaer Fach – literally "the big fort" and "the little fort". The forts are thought to have once been trading and political centres. When
7310-458: Was introduced to Parliament in 1884 by James Bryce but it was not until 1931 that a government inquiry recommended the creation of a 'National Park Authority' to select areas for designation as national parks. Despite the recommendation and continued lobbying and demonstrations of public discontent, such as the 1932 Kinder Scout mass trespass in the Peak District, nothing further was done until
7396-471: Was supported by Welsh actor Michael Sheen . The change was described by a local as "pride" for Welsh-speakers, while others admitted both names would probably continue to be used. As part of the name change, the park also adopted a different logo, replacing its previous logo showing a lit beacon. Plaid Cymru's Welsh language spokesperson supported the move, while the Welsh Liberal Democrats welcomed
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