Appendix 5: Feature recommendations organised by Special Quality

# SQ5 - Characteristic settlements with strong communities and traditions

# BUILT ENVIRONMENT

# Building materials

Key adaptation recommendations for building materials:

Improve current condition to increase resilience

The current condition of a feature is an important factor alongside its sensitivity and exposure, in determining its vulnerability to climate change. These recommendations are aimed at improving the condition of the feature at present, therefore making it better able to withstand future changes to climate.

Provide good information on appropriate materials and encourage building owners to carry out timely maintenance and repairs.
Create/maintain strong partnerships with external organisations to highlight materials sourcing issues, and ensure steady supply of appropriate materials (e.g. Historic England, minerals operators, architects, tradespeople).

Adapt infrastructure for future conditions

These recommendations are adaptations to physical infrastructure that should allow the features to better resist or recover from future climate change.

Keep abreast of new research into the performance of alternative materials for future climate adaptations.
Encourage the use and benefits of traditional materials. Review building design with the impacts of climate change in mind.

# Farmsteads

Key adaptation recommendations for farmsteads:

Improve current condition to increase resilience

Use existing PDNPA farmsteads research to understand regional patterns and help inform decisions about change.
Adapt traditional farm buildings where appropriate so they may still be used beneficially..
See Peak District Farmsteads: Issues and Responses Report (2017), section 6.2 'Recommendations' for further information.

Adaptations that could aid other features

These recommendations are changes that could be made to this feature, which will have a positive impact on the ability of other vulnerable features to withstand future climate change.

Consider keeping buildings standing for the benefits of wildlife.

# Field barns and outfarms

Key adaptation recommendations for field barns and outfarms:

Improve current condition to increase resilience

In order to halt large-scale dereliction and decay, some change in use is inevitable and work to enable quality conversions to economically viable uses, while maintaining the character as far as possible, should be encouraged where appropriate.
Investigate alternative funding streams to support adaptation.

Improve current condition to increase resilience: Targeted conservation efforts for important sites and at risk areas

The current condition of a feature is an important factor alongside its sensitivity and exposure, in determining its vulnerability to climate change. These recommendations are conservation measures aimed at those sites that will have the biggest impact for this feature – either because they are particularly important for the feature or because they are most at risk from climate change.

Work to identify the most significant landscapes with field barns for enhanced maintenance through future environmental land management schemes.

# Country houses

Key adaptation recommendations for country houses:

Improve current condition to increase resilience

Have emergency plans in place for limiting damage during major climate events.
Include country houses and their parklands in landscape scale flood risk management plans.
Increase the resilience of the surrounding landscape to help create a buffer for these country houses and parklands. Form estate level plans for improved climate resilience, such as improving moorland condition to reduce flood risk.
Consider collections and archives that could be at risk, and store those that are potentially vulnerable to damage from water, pests and overheating in places where these impacts will be smaller.
Remedial work completed after damage has occurred should be appropriate for the specific building. See the Historic England's 2010 (2015 edition) document 'Flooding and Historic Buildings' for examples.

Adapt infrastructure for future conditions

These recommendations are adaptations to physical infrastructure that should allow the features to better resist or recover from future climate change.

Install rain harvesting and storage facilities at sites which are sensitive to drought. This is already in place at some properties.
Keep abreast of new research into the performance of alternative materials for future climate adaptations.

# Listed buildings

Key adaptation recommendations for listed buildings:

Improve current condition to increase resilience

Remedial work completed after damage has occurred should be appropriate for the specific building. See the Historic England 2010 (2015 edition) document 'Flooding and Historic Buildings' for examples.
Provide good information on appropriate materials, and encourage building owners to carry out timely maintenance and repairs.
Create/maintain strong partnerships with external organisations to highlight materials sourcing issues, and ensure steady supply of appropriate materials (e.g. Historic England, minerals operators, architects, tradespeople).
Nurture collaborative networks to build capacity for monitoring (e.g. local interest groups).

Adapt infrastructure for future conditions

These recommendations are adaptations to physical infrastructure that should allow the features to better resist or recover from future climate change.

Installation of appropriate adaptive measures should be encouraged and regular condition inspections should be carried out.
Keep abreast of new research into the performance of alternative materials for future climate adaptations.
Encourage the use and benefits of traditional materials. Review building design with the impacts of climate change in mind.

# COMMUNITIES

# Local events

Key adaptation recommendations for local events:

Improve current condition to increase resilience

Provide advice and support to help event organisers of locally run, volunteer led and traditional events to adapt to climate change and implement more robust processes.
Assess the value of events and traditions to the PDNP economy and consider whether financial support and grants would be feasible to support the most vulnerable traditions.
Adapt to increased visitor numbers as a result of hotter, drier summers. Encourage public transport usage for larger events and encourage the provision of extra buses and trains, and low carbon transport, to reduce congestion and improve air quality.

Improve current condition to increase resilience: Targeted conservation efforts for important sites and at risk areas

The current condition of a feature is an important factor alongside its sensitivity and exposure, in determining its vulnerability to climate change. These recommendations are conservation measures aimed at those sites that will have the biggest impact for this feature – either because they are particularly important for the feature or because they are most at risk from climate change.

Create visitor management plans for peak times and honeypot areas. Identify areas that are vulnerable to crowding and influence behavioural changes to spread out visitor impact
Manage visitor numbers at high-risk sites and events.

# Transport links into the PDNP

Key adaptation recommendations for transport links into the PDNP:

Improve current condition to increase resilience

Review and adapt vegetation management to keep routes open.
Incentivise reduced demand for services through behaviour change and the use of more efficient technologies.
If visitor numbers increase at easy to access locations, encourage visitors to use alternative transport such as bikes and public transport to maintain tranquillity of the area.
Support changes such as enlarging drainage capacity for roads, railways and other routes to enable them to cope with increases in rainfall, and the implementation of speed limitations during times of extreme temperature.

Improve current condition to increase resilience: Increase structural diversity of the landscape to improve resilience to change

The current condition of a feature is an important factor alongside its sensitivity and exposure, in determining its vulnerability to climate change. These recommendations focus on increasing the structural diversity of the landscape in which the feature is found. By doing so the condition of the feature, and therefore its resilience to climate change impacts, should be enhanced.

Identify alternative and creative ways of delivering services, for example using green spaces to aid flood management.
Natural Flood Management in the uplands of the PDNP through habitat restoration and woodland establishment is a key adaptation to reduce the impacts of flooding on transport infrastructure.

# CULTURAL LANDSCAPES

# Boundaries and patterns of enclosure

Key adaptation recommendations for boundaries and patterns of enclosure:

Improve current condition to increase resilience

Monitor boundary changes at a landscape scale, for example quantify the loss of walls and hedges. Ensure that management mitigates piecemeal changes to enclosure patterns that may seem insignificant on their own, but that can have cumulative and large impact upon landscape character over time.
Encourage the use of agricultural buffer strips to protect hedges from human behaviour changes (e.g. intensification of agriculture) which may occur because of climate change.
Ensure management practices allow for the maintenance of walls and historic field patterns. Explore opportunities in future environmental land management schemes.
Undertake research to understand the significance of different boundary types and patterns. Appreciate that boundaries may have different components, including natural features. Also appreciate the time-depth in enclosure, for example prehistoric boundary patterns may underly the dominant, later enclosure patterns, and be visible only as earthworks. This will help inform future adaptation planning.
Help land managers within the PDNP to enter into environmental stewardship type agreements or secure funding for capital works by providing assistance with advice and logistics - see Moors for the Future Partnership's Private Land Project as a possible model.
Consider the impact on key views when planning adaptations.

Improve current condition to increase resilience: Targeted conservation efforts for important sites and at risk areas

The current condition of a feature is an important factor alongside its sensitivity and exposure, in determining its vulnerability to climate change. These recommendations are conservation measures aimed at those sites that will have the biggest impact for this feature – either because they are particularly important for the feature or because they are most at risk from climate change.

Focus efforts on restoring and reconnecting fragmented hedges and walls in priority areas. It is important to avoid further loss and restore boundaries. This will improve their function as wildlife corridors and improve their overall resilience to change. Ensure targeted conservation efforts are informed by historic character and relative significance.

Improve current condition to increase resilience: Increase structural diversity to improve resilience at a landscape scale

The current condition of a feature is an important factor alongside its sensitivity and exposure, in determining its vulnerability to climate change. These recommendations focus on increasing the structural diversity of the area or habitat in which the feature is found. This can help to offset the effects of climate change on the feature, as well as to allow it to be in a better position to recover from future climate changes.

Diversify the landscape and increase the proportion of tree cover to reduce the impact of flooding from rivers and overland flow.
Restore and connect fragmented hedges with native species sourced from further south in the UK. Increase species diversity of hedges to buffer against single species losses.

# Estate lands and designed landscapes

Key adaptation recommendations for estate lands and designed landscapes:

Improve current condition to increase resilience

Carry out research and survey into designed landscapes, especially those at a smaller scale that might not previously have been recognised as significant. This will help inform future adaptation planning.
Increase the resilience of the surrounding landscape to help create a buffer for estate lands and designed landscapes. Form estate level plans for improved climate resilience, such as improving moorland condition to reduce flood risk.
Nurture partnerships with big estates and landowners.
When planning any future adaptations ensure existing archaeological complexity is taken into consideration.
Consider the cumulative impact on estate lands by visitor pressure and events.
If visitor numbers increase at easy to access locations, encourage visitors to use alternative transport such as bikes and public transport to maintain tranquillity of the area.

Improve current condition to increase resilience: Targeted conservation efforts for important sites and at risk areas

The current condition of a feature is an important factor alongside its sensitivity and exposure, in determining its vulnerability to climate change. These recommendations are conservation measures aimed at those sites that will have the biggest impact for this feature – either because they are particularly important for the feature or because they are most at risk from climate change.

Identify field boundaries that are at risk and work to restore or improve them.
Manage and replace veteran trees (scattered trees in historic parklands and in field boundaries are a key characteristic of the Derwent Valley).
Harvest and store rain water at drought sensitive sites (already in place at some properties).

Improve current condition to increase resilience: Increase structural diversity to improve resilience at a landscape scale

The current condition of a feature is an important factor alongside its sensitivity and exposure, in determining its vulnerability to climate change. These recommendations focus on increasing the structural diversity of the area or habitat in which the feature is found. This can help to offset the effects of climate change on the feature, as well as to allow it to be in a better position to recover from future climate changes.

Increase woodland establishment and enhancement of habitats where appropriate, while maintaining the significance of key views and designed elements. This will strengthen existing landscape character, whilst in the future lower lying landscapes adjacent to the river could provide useful floodwater storage services.
Increase the diversity of planting in parklands to make them more resilient.

# BUILT ENVIRONMENT

# Villages associated with medieval strip fields

Key adaptation recommendations for villages associated with medieval strip fields

Improve current condition to increase resilience: Targeted conservation efforts for important sites and at risk areas

The current condition of a feature is an important factor alongside its sensitivity and exposure, in determining its vulnerability to climate change. These recommendations are conservation measures aimed at those sites that will have the biggest impact for this feature – either because they are particularly important for the feature or because they are most at risk from climate change.

Ensure conservation area boundaries and appraisals include relevant fieldscape setting when they are revised.
Use sites themselves as valuable assets for example to sustainably generate money for their upkeep. Explore opportunities in future environmental land management schemes.
Consider reducing or maintaining low stocking levels in fields with buried archaeological sensitivity.

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