The Blackdown Hills National Landscape management plan:
- Describes the special qualities of the Blackdown Hills National Landscape
- Explains why the Blackdown Hills National Landscape is important
- Sets out an agreed vision for its future
- Identifies the challenges and opportunities for the area, and how these will be tackled.
The management plan is reviewed every five years and is supported with an annual business plan. Blackdown Hills National Landscape’s annual business plan is an internal working document. It sets out the key activities, core work and projects to be undertaken by the National Landscape team and the key members of Blackdown Hills National Landscape Partnership to contribute to delivering the management plan.
Download Introduction to managing Blackdown Hills AONB (pdf) for an overview of the framework for the work we do to manage Blackdown Hills National Landscape (the new name for the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)). Each year, a summary of our work is published in our annual review.
National Landscape management plan review
Every five years, we create a Management Plan to help guide the work and activities of all organisations, groups and individuals with a responsibility or interest in the Blackdown Hills National Landscape.
Over the last couple of years we have been carrying out a review of the existing management plan to identify the key issues and opportunities that need to be addressed, and the focus for partnership action over the next plan period. The review was to be completed by March 2024 but this deadline has been extended by Defra to 2025 as a result of anticipated changes for National Landscapes as a result of the Landscape Review (Glover Review).
The review has included gathering evidence on the state of the Backdown Hills’ special qualities, and canvassing views through a public opinion survey. We have also held workshops with delivery partners. Thank you to everyone who took the time to complete the online survey or filled in a questionnaire at an event, a summary of the results can be seen below. Many people provided thoughtful and insightful additional comments in their responses – all of which is helpful in drawing up a new plan.
State of the National Landscape 2023 [9.5MB pdf] This report pulls together a range of data and information for the Blackdown Hills National Landscape, from Natural England, Defra, 2021 Census and other sources as indicated. It presents data collated in the autumn of 2023 alongside comparable data from the previous report published in 2017, where such exists, or to alternative baselines against which there are comparisons and trends, and is organised according to topics in the current management plan.
Public consultation on the draft Management Plan for 2025 – 2030 ran from 21 January until 4th March 2025 (19th March for parish councils). Summary of the changes made as a result of the consultation.
Latest news
The management plan has been formally agreed by the statutory consultee, Natural England. As of June 2025, it is in the process of being adopted by our local authority partners.
Please see below for the draft management plan consultation documents.
Management Plan 2025-2030
Consultation draft
January 2025
Management Plan 2025-2030
Appendices consultation draft
January 2025
Tell us what you think
Please share your feedback on the Management Plan consultation draft by completing our survey.
2019-2024 management plan
Blackdown Hills National Landscape Partnership leads on the review of the management plan on behalf of the responsible local authorities. The latest plan was adopted by the local authorities in spring 2019 and will run on to 2025.
Download a copy of the management plan 2019-2024. (Note that since publication of the plan Blackdown Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty has been renamed to Blackdown Hills National Landscape)
