Villages
The North York Moors National Park is home to 26,000 people, however, there are no towns in the National Park, these residents live in the 90 villages or on the many farms scattered throughout the area. Many of the villages are small and over half have less than 250 people living in them.
Villages are an important part of the National Park. They are living, working communities and places where people can go find important facilities such as shops, schools, doctors, post offices, churches, pubs, cafes, village halls and community centres.
Many of the buildings in the National Park are very old and are built out of the local sandstone or limestone. These traditional buildings are very pretty and the villages in the North York Moors are popular places for tourists to visit. They often have shops selling postcards, local crafts, gifts and ice creams and cafes and pubs where people can have a meal.
Hidden in the landscape of the North York Moors are many clues which tell us about the people who lived in this area in the past. Some cottages, barns, churches and abbeys are several hundred years old. Archeologists have also discovered the remains of Iron Age and Bronze Age settlements built several thousand years ago!
Most of the land in the National Park belongs to farmers and people who live there. The National Park Authority works with local people to keep these villages and buildings special and makes sure that any new buildings fit in well and don’t look out of place in this traditional landscape.
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How does the National Park Authority help to look after villages?
