CONSERVATION and heritage organisations, water companies, farming groups and volunteer networks have been urged to help the South Downs National Park Authority determine its priorities for the next five years.

The work is part of a five-year review of the park’s partnership manangement plan as the first was published by the authority in 2014 following extensive consulttion.

The plan sets out a shared vision for how the national park authority and the partner organisations would like the beauty spot to develop in the future and identified the key priorities for how they would work together over five years to achieve this.

But now the time has come to put together an action plan for the next five years so Margaret Paren, national park authority chairman, is hoping for a good response.

She said: “The partnership management plan is about conservation and enhancement, not preservation.

“In setting priorities for the next five years we must do all we can to respond to both the opportunities and challenges that face this wonderful living, working landscape to keep it thriving.

“Everyone who cares for or benefits from the National Park has a role to play and we will be engaging with partners, communities and other stakeholders over the coming months to put together an exciting future for the national park.”

The new partnership management plan will launch in autumn 2019 alongside a campaign encouraging members of the public to get involved in caring for the national park.