Natural England - Quality standards for visitors to parks and greenspace
Quality standards for visitors to parks and greenspace
Having a set of quality standards for accessible parks and greenspace helps to ensure that visitors are more likely to enjoy and be inspired by every visit they make.
We also want them to feel they have some ownership of their local greenspace and are prepared to take action to protect, conserve and promote it to others. We want to make our green spaces the envy of the world.
We have developed our own visitor service standards, which we aim to achieve for the most visited National Nature Reserves under our management. Each has defined criteria, some of which are essential and others that are desirable, depending on the nature of the NNR and its capacity to manage visitors.
We have also set standards for country parks under an accreditation scheme. We want every country park to sign up to the scheme so that the country parks brand is secured for the future.
The visitor standards for Local Nature Reserves are under development as part of the revision of the guidance for local authorities, which sets out what an LNR is and how to declare it.
The Green Flag Award Scheme
To ensure the highest quality in our parks and greenspaces, Natural England sponsors the Green Flag Award Scheme, including the Green Pennant and Green Heritage Awards. Started in 1998, this award has become accepted as the national benchmark standard for the best quality greenspaces, in terms of the facilities and services they offer visitors. Each successful site flies the Green Flag.
