Beloved National Landscapes To Take Part In National Celebrations

Beloved National Landscapes To Take Part In National Celebrations


Thursday 25th Apr 2024


The Clwydian Range & Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), will be taking part in Landscapes for Life week which takes place 21-29 September 2019. The AONB is one of 46 AONBs in England and Wales, the ‘family’ of AONBs includes the Cotswolds and the Chilterns.

Each year Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty across the UK organise special events during Landscapes for Life week, but this year is special – we are celebrating the 70th anniversary of the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act which paved the way for the legislation to create the UK’s 46 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

This year’s Landscapes for Life week is themed ‘Natural Health Service’. We’re encouraging local people and visitors to come along to an event or enjoy a walk or cycle ride in their local AONB, and celebrate the pioneering post-war vision that protected these treasured areas for everyone to enjoy.

Cllr Tony Thomas , Chair of the Clwydian Range & Dee Valley AONB, said: “The Clwydian Range & Dee Valley AONB is a one of the most beautiful, cherished and outstanding landscapes in the UK and offers a wealth of opportunities for people to enjoy our countryside.

“The health benefits of getting out and about and that being active in our beautiful countryside has been well proven, the AONB has organised a series of free events during Landscape for Life week and I would encourage as many people as possible to enjoy our own local Natural Health Service.” 

The week commences with a ‘National Moment’ at 2pm on Saturday 21 September when poet Laureate Simon Armitage will premiere a specially commissioned poem, and readings will take place at events nationwide.

Simon Armitage says: “I was delighted to be asked to work with the National Association for AONBs on this auspicious occasion. They are an institution that safeguards and celebrates all that is good about the world we live in, and an organisation whose values I share and trust in. The relationship between poetry and the land in this country goes back to the very origins of poetic utterance and I’m proud to be making a contribution to that ongoing dialogue. There is no greater challenge for a contemporary laureate and geography graduate than to contribute artistically to a conversation about the natural world and the state of our planet, and to praise those things that are wonderful and of wonder.”

Howard Davies, Chief Executive of the National Association for AONBs, said: "There are 46 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Each one is incredibly special to both their local communities and those that visit them from further afield. I am deeply moved by the importance people have attached to celebrating these special places during Landscapes for Life week. There are so many opportunities for people to join in and enjoy their local landscape and the benefits to their health and wellbeing that this can bring. I wish all AONB teams’ great success with their Landscapes for Life Week events and encourage everyone to get involved."

The 1949 Act that paved the way for the creation of AONBs was part of the post-World War Two democratic settlement efforts which saw the government rebuilding a sense of national identity and thanking citizens for their sacrifices during the war. The Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and National Parks that were designated as a result of the act were envisioned as partner organisations to the NHS which was created in 1948. Giving people access to the countryside for exercise, enjoyment and mental health benefits was considered a preventative measure; while the NHS was designed to help people if they became sick.

The Clwydian Range & Dee Valley AONB is holding four free events to help celebrate the week.

Looking After  Topiary

 

Saturday September 21

10:00-13:00

 

Meet:   Plas Newydd Llangollen LL20 8AW

Learn   about the equipment and techniques used to look after topiary. Minimum age 16

 

 

 

Loggerheads to Cilcain

 

Sunday September 22

10:00

 

Meet:   Visitors Centre Loggerheads Country Park. A morning guided walk from   Loggerheads to Cilcain with the Chief Executive of Wales Ramblers   Association. Bookable.

Walk with the AONB Officer

Howard Sutcliffe

 

Tuesday    September 24

10:00-16:00

Meet: Outside the Tourist Information Centre Castle Street   Llangollen grid ref 215421   A 9.5-mile   guided walk with the AONB Officer exploring the Vale of Llangollen visiting   the Woodland Trust’s Pen y Coed Reserve.

 

Walk with the AONB Officer

Howard Sutcliffe Moorland Hike

 

Thursday September 26

10:00-16:00 

Meet: The layby on the minor moorland road above World’s   End GR223483

A 10-mile guided walk with the AONB Officer visiting   World’s End and Frozen Clock on Ruabon Moor.

 

 

 Call 01824 712757 or email loggerheads.countrypark@denbighshire.gov.uk

Posted on Monday 9th September 2019