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site designation

The designation of protected sites is regulated under international, European and national law, which has given a layered approach to designation and to management.

In England and Wales, protected areas are referred to collectively as the National Site Network and include protected sites on land and at sea (see below).

The UK State of Nature Report published in 2023 reiterated that the UK’s wildlife is continuing to decline. The UK has seen significant loss of plants, animals and fungi. Across the UK species studied have declined by 19% since 1970. The main reasons cited in the report for nature’s decline are development, land use and farming, climate change, unsustainable fishing and marine development.

For information on protected sites at sea, see the following Practice Notes:

1. •

   Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR)—snapshot

2. •

   Marine protected areas

The Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP 2023) was the first review and revision of the 25 YEP and its overarching goal was ‘improving nature’. Key targets and commitments included:

1. •

   restoring or creating more than