What is the Gardens Trust's role in protecting UK parks and gardens?

The Gardens Trust is a national charity with statutory responsibility to protect and conserve historic designed landscapes in the UK.

How could the proposed planning rule changes affect UK parks and gardens?

The charity warns that the loss of its statutory consultee status could lead to an increased lack of understanding by planning authorities, putting many valued public parks and designed landscapes across the country at risk.

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UK Charity Warns of Devastating Impact on Parks and Gardens

Q: What are the key benefits of UK parks and gardens?

Historic parks and gardens provide people with access to green space, save the NHS around £111 million a year, and boost tourism, with around £2 billion spent in them by overseas visitors in 2023. They also play a crucial role in supporting biodiversity and helping communities adapt to climate change.

2 Oct

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Summary

Historic parks and gardens play a "crucial" role for UK growth, health and climate action
Proposed changes to planning rules threaten these green spaces
Charity warns of loss of statutory consultee status, leading to increased risk to public parks

UK Charity Warns of Devastating Impact on Parks and Gardens

According to a report released on October 2nd, 2025, the UK's historic parks and gardens play a crucial role in supporting the country's growth, health, and climate action efforts. However, these green spaces are now under threat due to proposed changes to planning rules.

The report, published by the Gardens Trust, a national charity responsible for protecting and conserving historic designed landscapes, calls for greater investment and action to safeguard what it describes as the country's green "crown jewels" of parks, parkland, cemeteries, and gardens.

The charity warns that the UK Government is set to launch a consultation on removing the Gardens Trust and other statutory consultees from the planning process in England. This would mean that local planning authorities would no longer be required to consult the trust when considering applications affecting sites on the register of parks and gardens of special historic interest.

The report highlights the immense value of these designed landscapes, which range from the gardens at Hampton Court Palace to Birkenhead Park and Highgate Cemetery. They provide people with access to green space, save the NHS around £111 million a year, and boost tourism, with around £2 billion spent in them by overseas visitors in 2023. These spaces also play a crucial role in supporting biodiversity and helping communities adapt to climate change.

The Gardens Trust is calling for better recognition of the role these landscapes play, greater protection, and increased investment to ensure they can continue to benefit communities across the UK.

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