Roath Park among Welsh green spaces honoured with new heritage award

14 much-loved green spaces in Wales rewarded for going above and beyond to protect, promote and preserve their unique history, with three locations gaining Green Heritage Site Accreditation for the first time in Green Flag Awards 2026

Fourteen much-loved green spaces in Wales have been rewarded for going above and beyond to protect, promote and preserve their unique history in this year’s Green Flag Awards, with three locations receiving Green Heritage Site Accreditation for the first time. 

Announced this week by Keep Wales Tidy, the 2026 Green Flag Awards celebrate green spaces which are safe, well-maintained and managed, and welcoming to visitors.  

An incredible 330 sites are named in the globally recognised awards, including parks, university campuses, community woodlands, cemeteries and housing estates. This includes 93 green spaces achieving full Green Flag Award status (for professionally-managed sites), and 237 receiving Green Flag Community Awards for volunteer-run spaces. For the third year running, Wales retains the honour of holding more Green Flag Community Awards than any other of the 20+ countries where the award scheme is run.

In addition, 14 of the winning sites also gained Green Heritage Site Accreditation, a prestigious supplementary accolade, supported by Cadw, given to parks and green spaces which demonstrate exceptional efforts to conserve, maintain and enhance their historic features, and encourage people to enjoy and understand them.

Caldicot Castle and Country Park in Monmouthshire, Gnoll Country Park in Neath Port Talbot and Roath Park in Cardiff all received the accolade for the first time.

All three are popular visitor destinations which have held the coveted Green Flag status for many years but this is the first time they have been rewarded for maintaining and protecting their unique historic features and encouraging visitors to interact and connect with their past.

Owen Derbyshire, Keep Wales Tidy Chief Executive, said:   

He added: “Wales is truly setting the standard for outstanding green spaces, with 330 places recognised in this year’s Green Flag Awards. Green spaces play a vital role in supporting the health and wellbeing of communities, and year after year Wales demonstrates an unwavering commitment to nurturing inclusive spaces that everyone can enjoy.

“Finally, we’d like to thank the staff and volunteers across Wales who help care for these historic sites. These awards simply couldn’t happen without their hard work and dedication, which ensures these special places can be appreciated by generations to come.”

Dr Kate Roberts, Chief Executive of Cadw, said:

“Green spaces play a vital role in the well-being of people and communities across Wales, offering the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of spending time outdoors while connecting with our shared heritage. Through our support of the Green Flag Awards and the Green Heritage Site Accreditation, Cadw is proud to celebrate those who work so hard to conserve and care for these special places.

“At Cadw, we believe our historic places are for us all, to keep, and these awards recognise the dedication of those ensuring Wales’ treasured green spaces can be enjoyed, understood and valued by generations to come. Congratulations to all this year’s award recipients.”

The full list of Green Heritage Site Accreditation in Wales for 2026