The Dartmoor National Park Authority (DNPA) is a national park authority in England, legally responsible for Dartmoor in Devon. It came into existence in its present form in 1997, being preceded by a committee of Devon County Council (from 1951 to March 1974) and the Dartmoor National Park Committee from 1 April 1974.
Dartmoor, in the county of Devon, is 368 square miles (950 km2) in area. It was designated as one of the National Parks of England and Wales by statute in 1951; it has over 34,000 people living within its boundaries, and some 2.2 million people visited it in 2011. [1]
For the first 23 years of its existence, Dartmoor National Park was administered by a special committee of Devon County Council, [2] the "Dartmoor Sub-Committee". During this time the major proposals dealt with by the committee included extensions of china clay workings and coniferous plantations (which did not take place); the erection of a television transmitting mast at North Hessary Tor in 1953 (passed by the casting vote of the chairman); [2] and proposals to construct three reservoirs, of which the Avon Dam Reservoir (mid-1950s) and the Meldon Reservoir (1972) were built, but one planned for the Swincombe Valley was rejected by Parliamentary Committee in 1970, "on the grounds of the technical unsuitability of the scheme, not because it was sited in a national park". [3]
In the 1960s three full-time park wardens were appointed, assisted by a number of voluntary wardens, whose job it was to "help and advise the public" and ensure compliance with local bye-laws. In addition, a temporary information centre was located at Two Bridges during the summer seasons. [4]
The Local Government Act 1972 resulted in a major change in the governance of national parks. The Act established a National Park Committee for each park under the leadership of a named National Park Officer and 75% of each Committee's agreed annual budget was to be met from central funds. Dartmoor National Park Committee (DNPC) was the first in the country to appoint a leader, in October 1973, and by the time the Committee became operational on 1 April 1974, many of the necessary officers had already been appointed. [5] A condition of the 1972 Act was that each National Park Committee had to produce a management plan setting out its policies, implementation plans and proposed budget. The first Dartmoor National Park Plan was published in 1977; [6] its stated aim was that the Park would be "as tidy, enjoyable and uncontentious as possible". [7] Reviews of the plan were produced in 1983 and 1991. [8]
From the outset the DNPC decided that to encourage local landowners to manage their land for the public benefit, it should acquire land itself and use it to demonstrate good practices. To that end it bought the 1,040-acre (421-ha) Haytor Down when it came up for auction in 1974, [9] followed by the purchase of a large part of Holne Moor in 1975 and the adjoining White Wood the following year, acquiring in the process the Lordship of the Manor of Holne. This acquisition means that the National Park Officer is also steward of the Manor and is thus responsible for administering the common land there, ensuring that a close relationship is maintained with the commoners on its 1,935 acres (783 hectares). [10] [11]
The current National Park Authority owes its existence to the Environment Act 1995 which made it a fully independent "freestanding local authority" from 1 April 1997. [11] Like the other twelve National Park Authorities in England and Wales, the DNPA has two "statutory purposes" which it must pursue. These are:
While upholding these statutory purposes it is also required to meet a socio-economic duty:
If conflict arises between the two statutory purposes, the Act provides that the first purpose, that of conservation, must take precedence. This enshrines in law the Sandford Principle which was first set down in 1974.
To update its earlier management plans, the Authority publishes a strategic plan, known as The National Park Management Plan, [12] supplemented by Local Plans or a Local Development Framework. [13] It also publishes a bi-annual free newspaper known as The Dartmoor Guide and a number of factsheets on a range of relevant topics. [11] Its budget for 2011/12 was £4.9m of which £4.5m came from Defra with the balance from income, grants, and fees and charges. [14]
As of 2012 the DNPA employs about 105 staff and is governed by twenty-two appointed members who are normally appointed for an initial period of up to 4 years. Six of these members are appointed by Devon County Council; six come from the three District Councils whose land includes parts of the moor; ten are Government appointees of whom four represent moorland parish council interests; and finally, six (usually local) people with an interest in the Park are directly appointed by the Secretary of State to represent the national interest. [15] The absence of locally elected representatives on the board has been a source of complaint against the DNPA. [16]
The Authority now owns a total of 3,587 acres (1,452 hectares) of the Park, the largest areas after Haytor Down and Holne Moor being 230 acres (93 hectares) at Plasterdown and 198 acres (80 hectares) at Dendles Wood. [11] It operates three information centres within the Park: the High Moorland Visitor Centre in Princetown (opened in 1993) [3] and information centres at Postbridge and Haytor. [17] Since 1979 its headquarters have been just outside the National Park boundary, at Parke in the town of Bovey Tracey. [18]
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the designation of Dartmoor as a national park, in 2001 the DNPA planned a number of initiatives. These included "Moor Memories", an oral history project which aimed to capture the voices and memories of the people of Dartmoor, building on similar projects undertaken by the Authority and others in the 1980s and earlier. [19]
In 2003 DNPA started to subsidise moorland farmers to keep Dartmoor Ponies in an attempt to save the breed after new European legislation increased the costs of keeping them. [20] In 2010 it submitted written evidence to Parliament about its concern for the long-term viability of hill farming on Dartmoor. [21]
The Authority announced in April 2004 that it was microchipping about 200 granite artifacts on the moor, including crosses, to deter theft and aid the recovery of any that might be stolen. [22]
In January 2012 the Authority stated that due to the loss of 28% of its budget in the Government's 2010 Spending Review, it intended to start charging for car-parking on its land during the summer season. [23] The cuts also meant that its regular series of guided walks on the moor would be provided by an independent company from April 2012. [24]
Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, South West England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers 954 km2 (368 sq mi).
The industrial archaeology of Dartmoor covers a number of the industries which have, over the ages, taken place on Dartmoor, and the remaining evidence surrounding them. Currently only three industries are economically significant, yet all three will inevitably leave their own traces on the moor: china clay mining, farming and tourism.
Sylvia Olive Pleadwell Sayer, Lady Sayer, was a passionate conservationist and environmental campaigner on behalf of Dartmoor, an area of mostly granite moorland in Devon in the south-west of England. She was chairman of the Dartmoor Preservation Association from 1951 to 1973, and remained deeply involved with the organisation until her death.
Teignbridge is a local government district in Devon, England. Its council is based in the town of Newton Abbot. The district also includes the towns of Ashburton, Buckfastleigh, Dawlish, Kingsteignton and Teignmouth, along with numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. Teignbridge contains part of the south Devon coastline, including the Dawlish Warren National Nature Reserve. Some of the inland western parts of the district lie within the Dartmoor National Park. It is named after the old Teignbridge hundred.
Widecombe in the Moor is a village and large civil parish in Dartmoor National Park in Devon, England. Its church is known as the Cathedral of the Moors on account of its tall tower and its size, relative to the small population it serves. It is a favourite tourist centre, partly for its scenic character and partly for its connection to the popular song "Widecombe Fair".
Ilsington is a village and civil parish situated on the eastern edge of Dartmoor, Devon, England. It is one of the largest parishes in the county, and includes the villages of Ilsington, Haytor Vale, Liverton and South Knighton. The parish is surrounded, clockwise from the north, by the parishes of Bovey Tracey, Teigngrace, Newton Abbot, Ogwell, Bickington, Ashburton, Widecombe-in-the-Moor and Manaton. In 2001 the population of the parish was 2,444, greatly increased from the 886 residents recorded in 1901. The parish is represented in parliament by Mel Stride, as part of the Central Devon constituency.
The Two Moors Way is a long-distance trail mostly in Devon, UK, first established in 1976. It links Dartmoor and Exmoor and has been extended to become a Devon Coast-to-Coast trail.
Bovey Tracey is a town and civil parish in Devon, England, on the edge of Dartmoor, its proximity to which gives rise to the slogan used on the town's boundary signs, "The Gateway to the Moor". It is often known locally as "Bovey". It is about 10 miles south-west of Exeter and lies on the A382 road, about halfway between Newton Abbot and Moretonhampstead. The village is at the centre of the electoral ward of Bovey. At the 2011 census the population of this ward was 7,721.
Lustleigh is a small village and civil parish in the Wray Valley, inside the Dartmoor National Park in Devon, England. It is between the towns of Bovey Tracey and Moretonhampstead. The village has often been named amongst the best or prettiest villages in the country in various publications, particularly due to the traditional thatched buildings in the village centre, and local activities such as the Lustleigh Show. This has also led to it being noted as the most expensive rural location to buy a house.
Haytor, also known as Haytor Rocks, Hay Tor, or occasionally Hey Tor, is a granite tor on the eastern edge of Dartmoor in the English county of Devon.
The Haytor Granite Tramway was a tramway built to convey granite from Haytor Down, Dartmoor, Devon to the Stover Canal. It was very unusual in that the track was formed of granite sections, shaped to guide the wheels of horse-drawn wagons.
The A382 is a road in South West England, connecting Newton Abbot to the A38, then to Bovey Tracey and on through Moretonhampstead to the A30.
The Dartmoor crosses are a series of stone crosses found in Dartmoor National Park in the centre of Devon, England. Many of them are old navigational aids, needed because of the remoteness of the moorland and its typically bad weather. Some mark medieval routes between abbeys. Other crosses were erected as memorials, for prayer, as town or market crosses, in churchyards, and as boundary markers. The crosses were erected over a long period of time, some as recently as 100 years ago, the earliest probably almost 1,000 years ago.
Dartmoor Forest is a civil parish in Devon, England. It was formed in 1987 by the splitting of the former parish of Lydford. It covers about 56,000 acres (230 km2) entirely within Dartmoor National Park, and is the largest parish in Devon. Despite its size its population in 2001 was only 1,619. Due to its large size it is surrounded by many other parishes: these are, clockwise from the north, Belstone, South Tawton, Throwleigh, Gidleigh, Chagford, North Bovey, Manaton, Widecombe in the Moor, Holne, West Buckfastleigh, Dean Prior, South Brent, Ugborough, Harford, Cornwood, Shaugh Prior, Sheepstor, Walkhampton, Whitchurch, Peter Tavy, Lydford, land common to the parishes of Bridestowe and Sourton, and Okehampton Hamlets.
The Dartmoor Training Area (DTA) is a military training area on Dartmoor in Devon in southwest England. The area consists of approximately 13,000 hectares in the Dartmoor National Park.
Dendles Wood is an area of protected oak-beech woodland located on the southern edge of Dartmoor, in the English county of Devon. Forming part of the Dartmoor Special Area of Conservation, the wood is also a Site of Special Scientific Interest, and 30 hectares of it has been designated a national nature reserve. It is one of five woodlands within Dartmoor that have been protected as national nature reserves. Dendles Wood and the adjacent Hawns Wood are sometimes known collectively as Hawns and Dendles. The wood supports a variety of flora and fauna, representative of upland oakwoods. In particular, it has a rich variety of moss and lichen, and several breeding bird species.
Spitchwick is an historic estate situated within the parish of Widecombe-in-the-Moor, Devon. The present 19th century mansion house known as Spitchwick Manor is situated four miles north-west of Ashburton, the gardens of which are open to the paying public.
Rippon Tor is a striking tor on eastern Dartmoor, in England, that stands at 473 metres (1,552 ft) above sea level. It has three cairns, of which are some of Dartmoor's largest, a triangulation pillar, and several rock piles that overlook the northern high moors near Fernworthy Forest and Great Mis Tor. Field boundaries surround the tor.
