Gardens and designed landscapes are grounds which have been laid out for artistic effect and, in appropriate cases, include references to any buildings, land, or water on, adjacent, or contiguous to such grounds.
Sites included in the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes are nationally important. The criteria for determining national importance is published in Annex 5 of the Scottish Historic Environment Policy 2011.
The duty to compile and maintain the Inventory is statutory. Historic Environment Scotland manages this work on behalf of the Scottish Ministers.
There is no primary legislation that affords protection to Inventory gardens and designed landscapes. However, Inventory status is a material consideration in the planning system.