London becoming world’s first National Park City

London will become the first capital city in the world to be awarded the status of a National Park City in recognition of the capital’s open spaces, waterways and natural environment.

To celebrate and mark this achievement, London Mayor Sadiq Khan is launching a week of 300 free ‘National Park City Festival’ events across London’s green spaces, wildlife habitats, green rooftops and waterways.

A special summit to mark the occasion will be hosted by Khan and the National Park City Foundation, with parties present set to sign the London National Park City Charter, which sets out key actions to make London a city where people, places and nature are better connected and matches the long term goals in the Mayor’s Environment Strategy.

By signing the charter, Khan is confirming he shares the collective ambition, responsibility and commitment to deliver on making London: a city which is greener in the long-term than it is today and where people and nature are better connected; a city which protects its core network of parks and green spaces and where buildings and public spaces aren’t defined only by stone, brick, concrete, glass and steel; a city that is rich with wildlife; a city where every child benefits from exploring, playing and learning outdoors; and a city where all can enjoy high-quality green spaces, clean air, clean waterways and where more people choose to walk and cycle.

Khan said: “I am proud to have helped London, one of the greenest world cities, be recognised as the world’s first National Park City. This status is a truly fantastic reflection of our vibrant and dynamic city and our amazing network of green spaces, rivers and natural habitats.  We must do all we can to help tackle the global climate emergency and ecological crisis and address the decline in biodiversity. That is why I’ve delivered 200 green space improvements, planted over 170,000 trees, protected the greenbelt and ensured greening in all new developments. To mark London becoming the first National Park City, our festival will provide hundreds of free events for everyone to enjoy across the capital’s beautiful green spaces, rooftops and waterways.”