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Unesco world heritage status: Seven sites win UK backing

PA Media YorkPA Media
York harbours a rich history left behind by its Anglo-Saxon, Viking and Norman inhabitants

Seven sites in the UK and its overseas territories are in the running to win Unesco World Heritage status.

York city centre, Birkenhead Park and an iron age settlement in Shetland are among the locations being put forward by the government to join the prestigious list.

The globally-recognised designation is given to places of cultural, historical or scientific significance.

There are already 33 World Heritage sites in the UK, including Stonehenge.

Globally, the sites on the list overseen by the agency of the United Nations, include Australia's Great Barrier Reef and historic areas of Cairo.

Five new sites from across the UK and overseas territories have been added to the government's "Tentative List", which is published about every 10 years and sets out the locations it is felt have the best chance of succeeding in being included.

DCMS/PA Media Birkenhead ParkDCMS/PA Media
Birkenhead Park inspired the development and creation of parks across the world including New York's Central Park

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) confirmed the new sites are:

  • York, which harbours a rich history left behind by its Anglo-Saxon, Viking and Norman inhabitants, with civic and religious buildings including its Minster
  • Birkenhead Park in Merseyside, which opened in 1847 and was a pioneering project to bring greenery to urban environments - it inspired the development and creation of parks across the world including New York's Central Park
  • The Zenith of Iron Age Shetland, a collection of three ancient settlements dating back thousands of years
  • The East Atlantic Flyway, a migratory bird route over western parts of Europe including Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Kent. It joins the list in recognition of its vital importance to bird populations and wildlife as an area that sees huge transient bird populations pass through every year
  • The Little Cayman Marine Parks and Protected Areas, in the UK overseas territory of the Cayman Islands, have also been put forward for their exceptional importance to marine biodiversity and their incredible natural beauty

Two other sites submitted their full nominations to Unesco earlier this year, and remain on the government's Tentative List.

They are The Flow Country, a large area of peatland across Caithness and Sutherland in the north of Scotland which plays a crucial role in supporting biodiversity, and the Gracehill Moravian Church Settlement in Ballymena, Northern Ireland.

Heritage Minister Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay said: "All the locations being put forward would be worthy recipients of this accolade - and we will give them our full backing so they can benefit from the international recognition it can bring."

PA Media Jarlshof, part of the Zenith of Iron Age Shetland, a collection of three ancient settlements dating back thousands of yearsPA Media
The Zenith of Iron Age Shetland is a collection of three ancient settlements dating back thousands of years

Laura Davies, HM ambassador to Unesco, said the five new sites added to the list "brilliantly reflect the diversity and beauty of the UK and its overseas territories' natural and cultural heritage".

The DCMS said it will work with local authorities and devolved administrations to develop their bids.

PA Media Divers at Little Cayman Marine Parks and Protected Areas, situated in the UK overseas territory of the Cayman Islands,PA Media
The Little Cayman Marine Parks and Protected Areas, in the UK overseas territory of the Cayman Islands, have also been put forward