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Application form
Please make sure you have read all the notes carefully before you start to fill in the application form. This application form can either be completed by hand or electronically - it is available on the Planning homepage at www.scotland.gov.uk/planning. Please complete all five sections. The deadline for submitting applications is 29 August 2007. An acknowledgement letter will be sent to the person who has completed this form.
1 Please provide a name and contact details of the lead organisation responsible for this work.
Name | Gordon Watson |
Job title | Director of Planning |
Organisation | Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park Authority |
Address | National Park Headquarters, The Old Station, Balloch, G83 8BF |
Telephone | 01389 722603 |
Fax | 01389 722633 |
Email | gordon.watson@lochlomond-trossachs.org |
2 If this is a joint application, please list the other partners who had a key role. You should also inform your partners that you are nominating the project for an award.
3 Tick one nomination category
Title of entry | Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park Plan |
Please complete the form on the following pages by providing a brief summary of the piece of work you have entered. You must also conclude with a key reason as to why you think this work merits an Award. Only the two A4 pages supplied here can be used and your text must fit within the boxes. The font size should be no less than 12pt.
The judging criteria are set out below. Please tick only the key criteria relevant to your entry:
You must describe, in your written submission, how the criteria which you have ticked relate to your project.
Description of project
To prepare the first National Park Plan for Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park to guide the achievement of the 4 National park aims and, more critically, to provide a lead and strategic context for joint working and initiatives among partner organisations to achieve a range of benefits for the Park. The project was unique in that there was no established model for National Park Plans within Scotland. An additional challenge addressing the broader remit of Scottish National Parks in having 4 statutory aims which includes the sustainable social and economic development of communities. The development of the plan therefore required to break new ground in relation to the need to provide strategic direction, both thematically and spatially, as well as a clear programme of activities which partners would be supportive of delivering. The plan also require to be fully rounded in reconciling heritage management, visitor management, community development and economic development issues in a manner which supported sustainable development and provided direction for physical planning. To meet this aspiration a very significant programme of engagement also required to be undertaken. |
Describe the background to the project
The National Park Plan is a new statutory plan required by the National Park Scotland (2000) Act to guide and co-ordinate the activities of all public bodies in relation to Park Areas. The first Plan represents a first attempt to develop an integrated management plan that provides comprehensive strategic direction and sets out priorities for action over the 5 year plan period. |
What are the aims and objectives of the project?
Ultimately the Plan requires to set out how the 4 statutory Park aims will be achieved in a co-ordinated way in the Park area. In effect the Plan is really seeking to achieve this through establishing a common agenda for the Park Authority and all partner agencies in establishing projects and programmes which achieve added value for a nationally important and heavily visited protected area. The Plan operates and delivers benefits on many levels. - Delivering better outcomes for a special place - by co-ordinating activities and ensuring best use of resources and more sustainable benefits
- Developing innovative solutions for rural Scotland - by demonstrating best practice in sustainable development
- Providing a Park for All - by helping people of all ages backgrounds and abilities to understand and use the Park
- Promoting the "Pride of Scotland" - by protecting an iconic part of Scotland's identity
The Plan describes the Park's special qualities and identifies approaches and priorities for managing the area's heritage. It provides sustainable opportunities to enjoy the special qualities, and identifies opportunities for sustainable economic and community benefits. It sets out key initiatives and a prioritised programme of activities for translation into more specific deliverable actions by the Park Authority and its partner organisations. It will be a major tool for the Park Authority in achieving its leadership role. |
Over what timescale has the project been developed?
The preliminary stage was to prepare a State of the Park analysis document (previously submitted to the SAQP). A draft plan was published and consulted upon spring/summer 2005. A finalised Plan was submitted to Scottish Ministers in November 2006 and ministerial approval obtained in March 2007. The Plan is now in its first full year of operation and the monitoring of projects and programmes is already underway. |
Explain the process and action taken
Processes were developed to ensure that stakeholders were fully involved in the development of the Plan. Our SAQP commended Community Futures programme ensured that local community priorities were highlighted. Various partner working groups helped to develop strands of the Plan across various themes. Key partners with a significant involvement included SNH, Forestry Commission, Scottish Enterprise National and Local Networks, Historic Scotland, Deer Commission, Local Authorities, Visit Scotland, sportscotland. An Overseeing Group comprising chief officers of these organizations endorsed the Plan confirming the role and commitment of each organization. This has now translated into delivery groups overseeing the implementation of the Plan. |
Explain the role of the key partners
An example of collaboration was the development of the innovative Special Qualities methodology to use a range of environmental data to evaluate the characteristics of the Park which involved close working with SNH and Historic Scotland. This has strongly informed the strategic approach in the Plan. Implementation groups have been formed with partners to deliver particular programmes as set out in the Action plan within the Plan. |
What results were achieved?
The approval of the Plan means that there is now a clear set of priorities and defined outcomes which all organizations are required to work to in the area. There are 7 programmes of activity all now underway under the guidance of the Plan. The Plan clarifies the role the Park Authority expects to play and what contribution others are expected to play. Examples include, Land Use initiatives where grant schemes are now up and running for land managers to take forward natural and cultural heritage conservation projects, historic environment grant schemes and improvements, the establishment of local management groups to tackle visitor pressures and the natural environment, a partnership approach to tourism and destination development to co-ordinate public sector partnerships with local businesses to improve the quality of local destinations and visitor experiences to maximize economic benefit, a further phase of Community Futures enabling local communities to take forward their own projects to improve their quality of life.
The plan is in its first year of operation and is already achieving a great deal on the ground. |
In summary, why does this piece of work merit an Award?
The Plan is the first time a truly comprehensive and integrated basis for co-ordinated partnership working to agreed priorities and outcomes has been produced for a protected landscape in Scotland. It provides strategic direction for a range of activities and functions, including providing a context for statutory planning in the Park. The Plan also embraces and enables voluntary and community based projects and initiatives and helps provide the case to help access various funding streams. The Plan provides a unique overview in providing strategic direction for a range of other strategies and initiatives, notably the emerging National Park Local Plan, and thereby ensures that they are helping to deliver a common agenda for the area. In so doing the Park Plan will help to ensure that the Park Authority Planning function becomes more enabling and outcome focused as per the ambition of the Modernising Planning agenda. Ultimately, the Plan provides a model for a more integrated approach to rural development issues in a protected area and delivering more effective outcomes on the ground through partnership working. |
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