A leading figure at the body behind the Broads has been chosen to oversee the family of national parks around the country.

Jacquie Burgess, chairman of the Broads Authority, was elected as chairman of National Parks UK at a meeting held in Norfolk earlier this month.

The body brings together Britain's 15 parks - from the Cairngorms in Scotland to the New Forest in the south of England - under one banner and is made up of one chairman from each.

While not legally a national park, the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads have long been considered part of the family and are branded as such.

Mrs Burgess, who grew up in Norwich, said the role was 'outward facing' and would see her work alongside the other chairmen to extoll the virtues of national parks to the public.

'It is exciting, because it's the way of pulling together the national park family across the British Isles and that's something I really enjoy,' she said.

'It's about finding the public's opinion and undertaking surveys with people to see what their attitudes are in terms of national parks.

'There's a strong responsibility in terms of promoting visitor and a wide tourism remit.'

Mrs Burgess said the decision showed how involved the Broads were with the wider national park network.

The 15 national parks welcome 75 million visitors a year, while half of all people in Britain live within an hour of one.

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