SCNP welcomes John Mayhew as Chair
By John Mayhew
I was honoured to be elected as SCNP Chairman at the April 2024 AGM. I’d like to pay tribute to my predecessor John Thomson, who stepped down after eight years of indefatigable service to the Campaign; I know as well as anyone quite how much time and work he has put into our efforts over that period. I’m pleased that he has agreed to become Vice-Chairman. I’d also like to thank retiring Vice-Chairman Graham Barrow, who fortunately is also remaining as a member of the Executive Committee.
Many SCNP members will have met or know of me, but for the benefit of others I’d like to introduce myself. I trained as a geographer, landscape manager and town and country planner. I spent most of my career at The National Trust for Scotland, latterly as its Head of Policy and Planning. Then I was part-time Director of Action to Protect Rural Scotland (APRS) for 14 years before retiring in 2022. While at APRS I also ran the joint project between SCNP and APRS to make the case for a national strategy for National Parks in Scotland – the work now ably done by Nikki Sinclair. I was the main author of our benchmark 2013 report Unfinished Business.
Growing up in Birmingham, I regularly visited the Peak District and Snowdonia National Parks on trips with family or Scouts. Every summer we visited my mother’s home in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, and took walking holidays in the Lake District National Park. For our first independent teenage holiday my friends and I went Youth Hostelling in the North York Moors National Park. So National Parks have been in my blood from an early age. I have long appreciated both their beauty and the work required to look after them, to encourage responsible behaviour by visitors and to maximise the benefits they bring to local communities.
I’m taking over at an exciting time in the lengthy process towards Scotland’s third National Park. By the time you read this we may even know where the Scottish Government proposes it will be – although that announcement may be delayed by the UK general election. My priorities are to work with APRS to ensure funding remains available for our joint Strategy Project, and to continue making the positive case for National Parks. This work remains crucial, because voices of opposition are now being raised for really the first time, including from some (but by no means all) land managers.
I believe that farmers and crofters have nothing to lose and much to gain from being in a National Park. National Park Authorities (NPAs) understand that farming is critical to achieving their objectives, so employ dedicated and experienced staff to support and advise farmers. Increasing support is given to farm innovation, diversification and market development. This approach is particularly prevalent in National Parks with more extensive areas of productive farmland, such as the Peak District and the South Downs. Many of the most successful initiatives are farmer-led, and farmers are frequently represented on NPA Boards. The additional resources a National Park brings to an area means that more advice, support and resources tend to be available to farmers within National Parks than to those outwith them. There is more information on this issue in our report Support for Farming in National Parks, on our website at https://www.scnp.org.uk/reports.
I look forward to working with SCNP members and others over what will no doubt be an eventful period. If any member would like to contact me they are welcome to do so at the email address below.
John Mayhew
Chairman