English Heritage has a register of historic parks and gardens which now covers over 1,300 sites. The register consists principally of landscape parks of country houses and public parks designed by known landscape designers. Many other historic buildings, however, have well laid out, attractive and mature grounds, for example, numerous institutions and hospitals. It was standard practice in the mid nineteenth century for mental asylums to be laid out with one acre of grounds for every 10 patients, with the result that many have fine landscape gardens with good specimen trees, sometimes of 100 acres or more. Many such places are not on the register, nor have the grounds been designated a conservation area. This is equally true of many well loved local parks and gardens. In several cases well laid out grounds or parks have been wholly or partially built over resulting in disastrous loss.

Too often the decision to protect parks and gardens is based on historical considerations such as knowledge of the name of a landscape gardener and not on the aesthetic merits of a place as an attractive example of landscaping which can provide a wonderful amenity for many years in the future. The decision to protect a landscape or garden should be available at a local level. Some local authorities, such as Doncaster and North Somerset have drawn up "local lists" of parks, gardens and open spaces which are included in the Local Plan. Development in these areas is prohibited if it harms their character. All local authorities, in partnership with the Garden History Society, county historic garden trusts and other local groups, should draw up such lists as a part of the local plan process.