County Durham Landscape Guidelines

The Landscape Guidelines are a set of documents designed to offer advice on maintaining diversity and beauty, to conserve the landscapes for future generations

They are based on a detailed landscape character assessmentthat was formally adopted by Durham County Council in April 2008.

The purpose of the guidelines is to encourage best practice in looking after the landscapes of County Durham. They provide an easily understood reference to help shape and guide landscape based plans, projects and schemes across the area.

The guidelines are not intended to provide a one-stop answer to any planning, development or land management query but rather to provide a framework to explore the options. They have a key role to play in understanding how and where changes could take place whilst ensuring that the special characteristics and distinctive features of the landscape are conserved.

It is intended that these guidelines will be used by planners, development control officers, farmers, land managers, foresters, wildlife and conservation agencies, countryside management teams, developers and a range of other agencies and organisations involved in landscape related matters.