The wider policy landscape

What is a National Park Partnership Plan?

The National Park Partnership Plan sets out how all those with a responsibility for the National Park will coordinate their work to tackle the most important issues. In particular, this plan:

Sets out the vision and overarching strategy for managing the National Park.

Guides the work of all public bodies and other partners to deliver the aims of the National Park.

Provides the strategic context for the Local Development Plan.

Is the Strategic Regional Land Use Framework and Regional Spatial Strategy for the National Park.

Is the Economic and Sustainable Tourism Strategy for the National Park.

The document is arranged in three sections: Nature, People and Place . In each section we set out on overall outcome that we want to achieve by 2045 (the year Scottish Government has committed to achieving net zero), plus a series of long-term objectives and key targets or indicators of progress . Each of these targets is supported by a set of actions and policies for the next five years.

We are aware that individuals reading the Partnership Plan will have different interests and priorities; however, we would recommend considering the plan as a whole to see how the four aims of the National Park will be delivered collectively. As an example:

To meet the target for peatland restoration there will need to be a change to deer management in the National Park . To enable the scale of peatland restoration to be delivered we will need to increase investment in skills and training of people to deliver this work, which in turn will be an opportunity for economic diversification within the Cairngorms economy . Finally, if we are going to have local contractors who undertake this work, we will need to invest in training and have the right level of affordable housing that allows people to live and work in the area . In this way, all the long-term objectives are interrelated, as the diagram below illustrates:

Figure 1: How objectives are interrelated

Place Objective C1 Ensure that there is sufficient affordable housing stock to enable people to live and work within the National Park. Objective A3 Restore and manage peatland within the National Park to reduce carbon emissions and improve biodiversity.

Peatland restoration

Nature

Objective A4 Reduce the negative impacts of red deer and other herbivores across the National Park to enable woodlands to expand, heather loss to be reversed, peatlands to recover and wider biodiversity and landscape enhancements to take place.

Objective B2 Develop a wellbeing economy that delivers social justice in a healthy ecosystem, drawing on the special natural and cultural qualities of the Cairngorms. Objective B4 Increase skills and training opportunities for people in the National Park to meet business needs and ensure opportunities created by the growth in green jobs can be filled by residents and under-represented groups.