The North Northumberland Coastal Plain is a major

natural region A natural region (landscape unit) is a basic geographic unit. Usually, it is a region which is distinguished by its common natural features of geography, geology, and climate. From the ecological point of view, the naturally occurring flora an ...

that lies on

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

's northeasternmost stretch of coastline on the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian ...

. To the west lie the Cheviot Fringe, the Northumberland Sandstone Hills and Mid Northumberland; to the south it is continued by the South East Northumberland Coastal Plain. The North Northumberland Coastal Plain lies along the coast of the county of

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

and is listed as Natural Area No. 1 and also as National Character Area 1 by

Natural England Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, ...

, the UK government's advisor on the

natural environment The natural environment or natural world encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally, meaning in this case not artificial. The term is most often applied to the Earth or some parts of Earth. This environment encompasses t ...

in England. The region is a coastal strip, around 70 kilometres long and 3 to 10 kilometres wide, that runs from the

Scottish Border The Anglo-Scottish border () is a border separating Scotland and England which runs for between Marshall Meadows Bay on the east coast and the Solway Firth in the west. The surrounding area is sometimes referred to as "the Borderlands". T ...

Amble Amble is a town on the North Sea coast of Northumberland, England, at the mouth of the River Coquet; Coquet Island is visible from its beaches and harbour. In 2011, it had a population of 6,025. Etymology There are two suggested origins of ...

on the River Coquet. Its narrow, low lying, windswept terrain has wide views east towards the sea and west towards the

Cheviots The Cheviot Hills (), or sometimes The Cheviots, are a range of uplands straddling the Anglo-Scottish border between Northumberland and the Scottish Borders. The English section is within the Northumberland National Park. The range includes ...

. The coastal scenery is diverse. The northern part has a 'hard'

cliffed coast A cliffed coast, also called an abrasion coast, is a form of coast where the action of marine waves has formed steep cliffs that may or may not be precipitous. It contrasts with a flat or alluvial coast. Formation In coastal areas in whic ...

of spectacular high cliffs, offshore islands and rocky headlands, whilst the southern strip is a 'soft' alluvial coast of wide, sweeping sandy bays backed by sand dunes and intertidal flats backed by saltmarsh. Inland, the plain is intensively farmed, typically with open, mixed arable land and few trees. The valleys and coastal fringes are characterized by woodland and permanent pasture or semi-natural

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...

.''North Northumberland Coastal Plain - Character Area 1''
at www.naturalengland.org.uk. Retrieved 7 Apr 2013. Roughly a quarter of the NCA lies within the

Northumberland Coast The Northumberland Coast is a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) covering of coastline from Berwick-Upon-Tweed to the River Coquet estuary in the Northeast of England. Features include: Alnmouth, Bamburgh, Beadnell, Budle Bay ...

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and also within the North Northumberland Heritage Coast. The region contains four

Special Areas of Conservation A Special Area of Conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...

- Berwickshire and North Northumberland Coast SAC; Newham Fen SAC; River Tweed SAC; and Tweed Estuary SAC – three national nature reserves – Lindisfarne NNR, Farne Islands NNR and Newham Bog NNR – and 15

Sites of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...

, the latter totalling 1,296 hectares. Its major watercourses are the

River Tweed The River Tweed, or Tweed Water ( gd, Abhainn Thuaidh, sco, Watter o Tweid, cy, Tuedd), is a river long that flows east across the Border region in Scotland and northern England. Tweed cloth derives its name from its association with the R ...

, which the latter section of the river forms the border with

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

in the north, the River Coquet in the far south,

Whiteadder Water Whiteadder Water is a river in East Lothian and Berwickshire, Scotland. It also flows for a very short distance through Northumberland before joining the River Tweed. In common with the headwaters of the Biel Water it rises on the low hillside ...

and the

River Aln The River Aln () runs through the county of Northumberland in England. It rises in Alnham in the Cheviot Hills and discharges into the North Sea at Alnmouth on the east coast of England. The river gives its name to the town of Alnwick and t ...

.''NCA Profile: 01 North Northumberland Coastal Plain (NE516)''
at www.naturalengland.org.uk. Retrieved 1 Aug 2014.

Holy Island Sacred space, sacred ground, sacred place, sacred temple, holy ground, or holy place refers to a location which is deemed to be sacred or hallowed. The sacredness of a natural feature may accrue through tradition or be granted through a bles ...

is an important historic site which incorporates

Lindisfarne Castle Lindisfarne Castle is a 16th-century castle located on Holy Island, near Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland, England, much altered by Sir Edwin Lutyens in 1901. The island is accessible from the mainland at low tide by means of a causeway. H ...

and Priory. Other historic sites include

Bamburgh Bamburgh ( ) is a village and civil parish on the coast of Northumberland, England. It had a population of 454 in 2001, decreasing to 414 at the 2011 census. The village is notable for the nearby Bamburgh Castle, a castle which was the seat o ...

, Dunstanburgh and

Warkworth Castle Warkworth Castle is a ruined medieval castle in Warkworth in the English county of Northumberland. The village and castle occupy a loop of the River Coquet, less than a mile from England's north-east coast. When the castle was founded is unc ...

References

Natural regions of England Landforms of Northumberland Plains of England Northumberland coast {{Northumberland-geo-stub