Seven UK sites up for UNESCO World Heritage status
Five new sites across the UK and Overseas Territories have been added to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites tentative list.
That makes seven sites to be put forward by the government for UNESCO designation.
The Tentative List is published around every ten years by the UK Government.
It sets out the sites with the best chance of success and helps local authorities develop their bids.
Cultural sites on the list include York with its Minster and Anglo-Saxon, Viking and Norman heritage.
Birkenhead Park, which opened in 1847, was a pioneering project to bring greenery to urban environments.
It has influenced city parks across the world, including NYC’s Central Park.
The East Atlantic Flyway, a migratory bird route over western parts of Europe including Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Kent, joins the list.
Overseas, the Little Cayman Marine Parks and Protected Areas, has been put forward for marine biodiversity.
Also on the list is the Zenith of Iron Age Shetland, a collection of three ancient settlements dating back thousands of years.
Heritage Minister Lord Parkinson said: “We are confirming our support for some of the most enchanting heritage sites and breathtaking landscapes.”
UNESCO’s World Heritage Site designation offers international recognition to promote themselves on a global stage.
Those successful join the 33 other World Heritage Sites already based in the UK including Stonehenge and Hadrian’s Wall.
Two sites which submitted their full nominations earlier this year also remain on the tentative list.
One is The Flow Country, a large area of peatland across Caithness and Sutherland in the north of Scotland.
source: Travel Mole
