Signs will spend 75 years 'weathering beautifully'

Surrey County Council's chairman Tim Hall unveiled the first sign

Surrey Hills National Landscape says its new highways signs will spend the next 75 years "weathering beautifully over time".

They were funded by the government to raise the profile of Surrey Hills' change in status to a National Landscape in 2023 - along with all other Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Inspired by South Downs National Park signs, the steel signs feature an acorn seed pod, which is the Surrey Hills logo designed by sculptor Walter Bailey.

A spokesperson for the site said: "They will replace the old Surrey Hills signs with Corten steel so they will be a legacy for the next 75 years, weathering beautifully over time, just like the landscape they represent."

The Surrey Hills National Landscape, which stretches from Grayswood to Oxted, is one of 46 nationally protected landscapes in the UK, having equal landscape status and protection to a national park.

Rob Fairbanks, director of the Surrey Hills National Landscape, said: "Thank you to everyone involved in bringing these signs to life, and to colleagues at Surrey County Council for their support, including their chairman Tim Hall who unveiled the first sign on site."