This definition is taken from the Authority's currently adopted Cultural Heritage Strategy.

The cultural heritage of the Peak District National Park includes all the evidence for past human activity and the associations that can be seen, understood and felt. It includes tangible heritage: landscapes, buildings, sites, monuments and objects, records, archives and collections, as well as intangible heritage: local customs, legends, traditions and arts. The cultural heritage includes the aesthetic appreciation as well as the physical evidence of human activity across thousands of years. It is all around us, providing the context for our everyday lives. It influences regional, local and cultural identity and makes a significant contribution to quality of life, including access, accessibility and social inclusion. It contributes to knowledge, education, understanding and the local and regional economy, it provides recreation and employment, is a force in regeneration, tourism and sustainable development and provides places in which to live and work. The cultural heritage is dynamic and continually subject to change.