It provided for the establishment of country parks and gave local authorities certain powers in respect of the management of common land and of the provision of camping and picnicking sites and provided for grants to such bodies for their establishment.

The Act conferred powers on certain authorities to exercise control over boating on waterbodies within national parks and over the conversion of moorland and heathland to agriculture.

It conferred upon water undertakers and the Forestry Commission powers to provide for public access and enjoyment in and around reservoirs and forests, and amended aspects of the Forestry Act 1967, including provision for compensation in respect of the making of tree preservation orders.

Certain other miscellaneous provisions were made by the Act[1] The Countryside in 1970 conferences held in 1963 and 1965 led to the publication in 1966 of a Government white paper called Leisure in the Countryside which proposed inter alia, the creation of country parks near to centres of population so as to ease pressures on wilder areas.

The next year the publication of the report of the Gosling Committee recommended a suite of proposals concerning access to the countryside.