Galloway National Park proposal
In July 2024 the Scottish Government announced that Galloway has been chosen as the preferred site for Scotland’s next National Park. The joint bid, submitted earlier this year by the Galloway National Park Association (GNPA) and the GSA Biosphere Partnership was the winning submission from a shortlist of five really special places located across Scotland.
Any new National Park must support economic growth; address the climate emergency; and improve public services and community wellbeing. It offers an opportunity to bring new funding into the region to help address these pressures which would not otherwise be available. Our joint bid for a Galloway National Park represents the intent to build on over 12 years of work led by the GSA Biosphere Partnership, which continues to raise the need for better investment in southwest Scotland’s natural and cultural heritage and new socio-economic opportunities for rural communities and businesses.
What Happens Next?
An extensive public consultation and reporting process is now underway, led by Scottish Government’s appointed Reporter, NatureScot. This will run until the end of April 2025. The consultation gives local residents, businesses, communities and land managers the opportunity to have their say in whether or not Galloway should become a National Park, where the boundary for a new park should be drawn, its potential powers and functions, and the proposed membership of a National Park Authority for the area. NatureScot will provide advice to Ministers, who will then decide whether to proceed by issuing a Draft Designation Order for further consultation before National Park status is approved by the Scottish Parliament.
Have Your Say!
Our goal is for the collaborative, participatory ethos of our UNESCO Biosphere to help shape a modern National Park that empowers diverse stakeholders. For this to happen, we need everyone who lives and works in the area to take part in the public consultation and have their say. NatureScot is hosting an information portal where people can respond to the proposal online. They are also running drop-in sessions, community meetings and other events at local hubs across Dumfries & Galloway, East Ayrshire and South Ayrshire for the duration of the consultation process.
Access the Galloway National Park Information Hub
More information on NatureScot’s Reporter Plan for 2024/25
Read more about National Parks in Scotland
You can also contact NatureScot directly regarding the Galloway National Park proposal by emailing nationalparkreporter@nature.scot.
Remember: the National Park is still just a proposal with nothing decided yet in terms of its boundary, powers, functions, or governance. This public consultation is a unique and critical opportunity for local people to take part in deciding all the above and we encourage everyone to get involved.
