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  LOCAL NEWS 2004

Open country above Corton Denham, Somerset, successfully claimed by  Rodney Legg Photo: Rodney Legg

Our chairman, Rodney Legg, is celebrating his personal additions to the Countryside Agency’s map of open access land in central southern England. He filed some 40 per cent of 1,150 applications for additions to the draft map. Now, with the finalised regional map coming into effect on 14 December, the Open Spaces Society is counting up its successes. Rodney was initially disappointed but is now exuberant:

‘Overall my success rate was poor, with nearly 500 claims resulting in only 50 additions to the map, but many of these are marvellous. They cover big areas of countryside and I have just calculated that I reached my personal target which was to win 640 acres of land. That’s a square mile gained for public access.’

The largest of these blocks are along a limestone ridge from Poyntington, near Sherborne in Dorset, to South Cadbury in Somerset. West-facing slopes, overlooking Yeovilton air base and the Somerset Levels, are clearly visible from the A303 trunk road. They include Parrock Hill and the Beacon above Corton Denham.

Mr Legg says: ‘Here a whole geological and geographical region was omitted from the Countryside Agency’s original survey. My main achievement has been to win the inclusion of the famous Cadbury Castle hilltop of King Arthur and Camelot legend. Only two of my claims in this area were later deleted as a result of objections. So, I’m not going to be flavour of the month with local landowners.’

Elsewhere, much more was lost to counter-submissions by farmers—arguing that their land had been subject to agricultural improvement and was therefore exempt—but despite this, Rodney Legg was able to make the case for adding a number of grassland areas. These include well-known ancient monuments and viewpoints such as the interior of Maiden Castle, largest of the Wessex hill-forts, and the tower-topped Glastonbury Tor. Some of the wildest remain inaccessible because they are inside the tank gunnery training grounds of the Lulworth Ranges, in the 3,003-acre parish of Tyneham which was evacuated for military occupation on Sunday 19 December 1943.

Here Mr Legg had a different motive for claiming open country as there can be no right to roam:

‘These victories might seem Pyrrhic rather than practical. We cannot wander at will across areas strewn with countless unexploded shells and bombs, but the intention was to ensure a public right of return if these areas are ever released and to spike the commercial potential of their future exploitation for other purposes. Now, if the Army leaves, we can enter.’



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We slate new wind-turbine plans
30 November 2004

We have slated plans by Devon Wind Power to site 22 wind turbines on Fullabrook Down, south of Ilfracombe in North Devon.

Our general secretary, Kate Ashbrook: ‘The wind turbines will be a severe eyesore on this lovely plateau, visible for many miles, and will destroy the peace and tranquillity of this attractive part of Devon.

‘The construction will cause huge disruption, with access roads being driven through undisturbed farmland and hedges removed.

‘The developers appear not even to be aware that the area is surrounded by public paths, which are much used by walkers, riders and cyclists for quiet enjoyment. Their pleasure in using these paths will be severely diminished by the wind turbines towering over them,’ Kate argues.

‘Furthermore, the developers dismiss archaeological features and clearly have no understanding of the importance of an archaeological landscape. They seem to think that if they move a wind-turbine base a few feet to avoid an ancient monument, honour is satisfied. That is not the case.

‘We have called on the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry to reject these pernicious plans,’ declares Kate.



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We rescue historic Northamptonshire footpath
23 November 2004
 

	We are delighted that a plan to move part of a footpath at Croughton (three miles south-east of Brackley) from its historic route has been thrown out by an independent inspector. The society objected to the plan at a public inquiry last month.
Looking west from Mill Lane along the definitive route towards Croughton Mill. Photo: Bob Coles

Says our local representative at the inquiry, Bob Coles: ‘It was vital to save this lovely route. Croughton footpath AF13 runs through Croughton Mill, an attractive group of buildings of local stone. The proposed new route would have gone around the edge of the property, it was further and less enjoyable.  The owner of the dilapidated Croughton Mill wanted to move the path to increase his privacy and security,’ Bob continues. ‘He argued that, running so close to the house, it would prejudice the sale and restoration of the property. We disputed this. Many paths pass close to dwellings, and people are interested in seeing these lovely buildings. In any case, the law requires the owner to prove that it is in his interests to move the path—since he no longer lives at Croughton Mill, he is not affected by its existence.

‘We were delighted when the inquiry inspector, Susan Doran, upheld our view and rejected the plan. She said that, since the property had been unoccupied for several years and was in a poor state of repair, she could not accept that the proposal was in the interests of the privacy of the landowner. She went on to say that it was improbable that the property could be occupied unless it was redeveloped, and no one knew what form any future development might take. Therefore she concluded that the grounds for moving the path had not been met—a wonderful decision,’ Bob declares.



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'Pre-empt the developers!'
5 October 2004

We have called on communities to identify open spaces which are precious to them, and to register them as greens to save them from development.
The call came from our general secretary, Kate Ashbrook, at a meeting of the West Devon Environmental Network (West DEN) in Princetown, Devon, on 16 September.

Said Kate: ‘Once the predators apply for planning permission it is probably too late. Communities should be identifying now those areas of land, no matter how small, that they use for informal recreation. One day they might be under threat.  Provided you can show you have used the land for 20 years, without asking permission or being stopped, you can apply to the registration authority (for example Devon County Council or Exeter, Plymouth or Torbay unitary councils), to register the land as a green ⁽¹⁾.  The Open Spaces Society can help with the process. Once registered, the land is safe from development because nineteenth-century legislation makes it illegal to encroach on a green.

‘Greens are not just the traditional, village-centre places where cricket is played. They are any piece of land which has been used by local people for informal recreation, such as walking the dog, kicking a ball, watching birds or picking blackberries.  Registration can take time, and involve a public inquiry, so it’s best to get the land secured now, before it is threatened. Don’t wait until a planning application is submitted,’ warned Kate.

‘Recently we have advised members in Coombeinteignhead, Kingsbridge, Seaton and Paignton on this issue. We are also helping campaigners at Carlyon Bay near St Austell to save the beach from development. Unfortunately we were too late to save the green space at Wayside in Ivybridge, which is now being developed for a new traffic system,’ Kate declared.

1. Registration is carried out under section 13 of the Commons Registration Act 1965. To qualify as a green the land must have been used by a significant number of local inhabitants, for ‘lawful sports and pastimes’ (ie informal recreation), for at least 20 years. They must not have been stopped or asked permission.



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Society saves vital path for Reading’s residents
9 September 2004

In the first case to be decided under a new law⁽¹⁾, the Open Spaces Society has saved a public footpath from Weald Rise to Bates Hill in Tilehurst, Reading. The path runs between the two fenced compounds of Norcot Nursery School, which applied to close it under the new law for stopping up paths across school grounds. The society was the sole objector to the closure:

Says our general secretary Kate Ashbrook: ‘This is an excellent result from the inspector, Mr David Woodrow, who decided the case following an exchange of correspondence.  He rejected the closure because he did not consider the tests in the legislation were met.’

Kate explains: ‘He needed to be satisfied that the path should be closed in order to protect pupils or staff from “violence, the threat of violence, harassment, alarm or distress”. The school did not provide sufficient detail of the incidents it claimed had occurred, nor did it prove that they happened from the footpath.  The inspector felt it was not clear that the alleged problems were caused by the existence of the footpath. Certainly we challenged the quality of the council’s evidence.  The inspector also had to consider what other measures might improve security. The school has recently erected high-security fencing which, he said, “should improve the security greatly”.  The inspector noted that the fencing at one end had been placed on the path, narrowing it by four metres and making the path intimidating, which would create a security problem in itself.  This may be an illegal obstruction of the public highway and we are calling on the council to make the school move the fence back.  The inspector had to be satisfied that the closure would substantially improve the security of the school. He considered that it might have the opposite effect since the path would no longer be open “to legitimate use and informal supervision by the public”. It is well known that public use of a path deters crime and anti-social activities.  Finally, there must be a reasonably convenient alternative route. There is not. If the path were closed, people would be forced to walk up or down the steep hill of Weald Rise and alongside the busy A329 Oxford Road.  The inspector agreed with us that this would be longer and steeper. It “would be significantly to the disadvantage of people who were old, or burdened or of limited mobility”.  He concluded that the existing footpath “provides a safe and level link between two areas of housing between which people might reasonably be expected to want to walk for entirely legitimate reasons”.  He also rejected the closure on the grounds that it could not be done under this legislation since the path does not actually cross school land. Because this is the first case and therefore there is no case law, he thought it prudent also to consider whether the proposal should be allowed on its merits—and he found that it should not.

‘We are pleased he has carried out such a thorough examination of this case. It will be a useful precedent when other schools try to close or move paths under this legislation. This case shows that it will not be as easy as they might have thought,’ Kate argues.

1. Reading Borough Council proposed to close the path under section 118B of the Highways Act 1980, which was introduced in the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 and enables councils to apply to close or move paths which cross school grounds ‘where it is expedient for the purposes of protecting the pupils or staff from violence or the threat of violence, harassment, alarm or distress arising from unlawful activity, or any other risk to their health or safety arising from such activity’.

Click here to link to Planning Inspectorate Order Decision



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We give Henley Festival the rocket
19 July 2004

We were furious that Henley Festival once again sited its firework display across a public footpath by the riverbank, illegally blocking it. The path was cleared on 9 July, two days after the festival began, but only after an uproar from the society and Oxfordshire County Council. Even then, walkers had to pass among the fireworks, putting themselves at risk.

‘The festival did this last year and got away with it. It knows the footpath is there and yet it ignored the law,’ said Kate Ashbrook, our general secretary.

‘We called on Oxfordshire County Council, which has a legal duty to ensure all paths are open, to get the matter sorted out immediately. People trying to walk the route by the river close to Phyllis Court had to walk among the fireworks. Clearly this was highly dangerous, and it is a criminal offence to block a footpath.  Moreover, the festival breached its agreement with Oxfordshire County Council to keep the path clear.’

Adds David Parry, a member of the society who lives in Henley: ‘This was a deliberate repeat of last year’s provocation. We shall ensure that next year the fireworks are sited a long way from the path. We trust the county council will immediately prosecute the festival if it blocks the path again.  A footpath is a highway in law just like any road. The festival wouldn’t erect a firework display on the main road out of Henley so why should it do so on a public footpath?’

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We back new campaign for Petersham Meadows
14 July 2004

We are backing the campaign to preserve Petersham Meadows and the view from Richmond Hill in south-west London. We have donated £100 to the Petersham Trust, set up in 1998 for this purpose.

Says Kate Ashbrook, our general secretary: ‘The Open Spaces Society, then the Commons and Footpaths Preservation Society, was instrumental in saving the land in 1902. Petersham Meadows were threatened with development, and we led the campaign for an Act of Parliament, the Richmond, Petersham and Ham Open Spaces Act 1902, which protected the land in perpetuity as an open space for the public.  That Act is believed to be the first to protect landscape.  We are delighted to be able to continue our support for this wonderful place and we congratulate the Petersham Trust on its care and management of the land.’




Ugborough footpaths won back
14 July 2004

Ugborough footpath 7 in south Devon was reopened by Devon County Council, working with Ugborough Parish Council's Parish Paths Partnership Scheme, in April 2004.  The society had been pressing for a year for the path to be opened.  The traffic on the B3196 road between California Cross and Kitterford Cross had to be regulated by traffic lights while the impressive signposts were placed on the bank to the east of the road and the steps and stile erected on the western side.  This is good work, although the steps and stile are awkward for the less agile.  This is a useful path because it enables walkers to avoid using narrow lanes.

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We call for task force to save beauty-spot path
14 July 2004
 

At a packed public meeting in Dartmouth on 27 May, local people responded to the call from our general secretary, Kate Ashbrook, and agreed to form a task force to save the footpath to Castle Cove, a beauty spot below Dartmouth Castle.

Says Kate: ‘This is a spectacular, breath-taking spot, which can now only be seen, tantalisingly, from above. It is tragic that we can no longer walk down to Castle Cove because the path has been closed on grounds of alleged safety. We believe that, given the will, the path could be reopened for all to enjoy. The decision makers are the members of Devon County Council and South Hams District Council. The local electorate must persuade them of the need to act.

‘We are delighted that the people of Dartmouth have formed a task force, to prepare and implement their campaign plan to save this path. Every solution must be considered, and we must not take no for an answer,’ Kate declares.

‘The route is important for its history and beauty, and for the local economy. Castle Cove is a place that people want to visit. When they come, they will spend money in the area too. We could get fresh legal advice and our own engineering reports to see whether the path is truly unsafe at present and, if so, what work is needed and at what cost.

‘We need to work with others to find solutions: the county, district and town councils, Anthony Steen MP, English Heritage (which stands to gain if the path is reopened because people get an enticing view of Dartmouth Castle), the regional development agency and the tourist authority, to name a few. The Open Spaces Society will be right behind the task force, ready to give what help and advice we can,’ says Kate.

Adds Anthony Steen, MP for Totnes, who has been at the forefront of the campaign to reopen the path: ‘I am exasperated about the attitude of public authorities, who are obsessed by rules and regulations, and the fear of being sued. Of course we must protect the public against real danger, but the risk of crossing a road is far greater than that of a cliff fall at Castle Cove.’

There were nearly 100 people at the meeting and 12 of them volunteered to join the task force.

(Click here to see latest news story relating to this path.

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Lazy Lincolnshire
14 July 2004

Our indefatigable local correspondent for Lincolnshire, Brett Collier, has at last persuaded Lincolnshire County Council to remove the padlock from the locked gate which illegally obstructed Kirkby Underwood footpath 7, five miles north of Bourne.  It took many letters to the council, which procrastinated for 20 months, before the padlock was removed.

This path is famous because it was the subject of the High Court case, Rubinstein v Secretary of State for the Environment (1987) concerning the ability of surveying authorities to downgrade or delete paths on the definitive map.  Incredibly, Lincolnshire County Council is now arguing that this path should not be on the map at all.

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Wiltshire footpaths reinstated through crops
14 July 2004
 

Our member Gordon Reeds, from Steeple Ashton in Wiltshire, is nothing if not persistent.  For six months he continually pressed Wiltshire County Council to do its statutory job and ensure that Steeple Ashton footpath 1 and West Ashton footpath 13, among others, were reinstated through the crops.  The photos show the paths on 7 May, cleared at last.




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We fight for Marsh Lane Footbridge in Leyton
5 July 2004

We have objected to plans to close the much-used Marsh Lane Footbridge at Leyton as part of the Channel Tunnel rail extension. We played a leading role, one hundred years ago, in saving Leyton marshes for public recreation.

Says Bernard Selwyn, the society’s representative for London: ‘The application is misconceived as it only recognises Marsh Lane Footbridge as part of a pedestrian route to Lea Bridge Road. Its real purpose is an essential link between Leyton and the recreational facilities of Leyton, Hackney and Walthamstow Marshes, for which no alternative route is offered.

‘The railway company should withdraw the application and agree to raise the bridge sufficiently for the requirements of the Temple Mills Eurostar Depot. Then there would be no need to close this vital bridge. We have objected to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and called for the application to be refused if it is not withdrawn. If there is any doubt, ministers should hold a public inquiry,’ Bernard concludes.

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Wetley Moor Common saved from fencing blight
6 May 2004

We are delighted at the decision to reject an application for fencing on Wetley Moor Common between Leek and Stoke-on-Trent on the Staffordshire/Stoke border.

The Secretary of State for Environment has endorsed the recommendation of the inspector, Peter Burley, and refused the application from the Wetley Moor Joint Committee to erect more than a quarter of a mile of post-and-wire stock fencing on the common. The Open Spaces Society was represented at the seven-day public inquiry last year by spokesman Edgar Powell.

Says Edgar: ‘We argued at the inquiry that the fencing would blight the landscape and restrict the public’s freedom to wander here, a freedom which will soon become a right under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. Furthermore, we deplored the fact that the common is already festooned with unlawful fencing. Outrageously, the landowners, Staffordshire Moorlands District Council and Stoke-on-Trent City Council, appear to be condoning this unlawful fencing. As public bodies, they should know better. The Wetley Moor Joint Committee argued that it needed to fence the common in order to bring this important lowland heath, a designated site of special scientific interest, into good condition. The application was backed by English Nature.

‘However, in her decision letter [29 April], the Secretary of State has backed the inspector’s view that the proposed fencing would not achieve the desired aim. She observes that the success of the scheme depends on the condition of the existing fencing. Since the Wetley Moor Joint Committee does not own that fencing, it has no control over its condition. In any case, since that fencing is unlawful, it must be removed. We called for this at the inquiry and, now that the decision has been issued, we are writing to the two local authorities, urging them to set an example by removing all the unlawful fencing on the land. They have powers to do this both as landowners and under commons law.

‘Meanwhile, the Secretary of State also notes that there is a lack of public confidence in the Wetley Moor Joint Committee and suggests that the committee may “wish to give consideration to whether there is any action it can take to establish an effective management regime which commands the confidence of all interested parties”. We echo that view.

‘Wetley Moor is a priceless asset for the community which the committee has neglected and mismanaged. It’s time it got its common in order,’ Edgar concluded.

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Eype Down Common to stay free
6 May 2004
 

Paths through the bracken across Eype Down - saved from fencing Photo: Rodney Legg

We are celebrating the Secretary of State for the Environment’s rejection of an application to erect fencing and gates on Eype Down Common near Bridport in West Dorset. The society objected to the fencing when it was consulted by Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), and a public inquiry was held in February 2004.

Says Nicola Hodgson, the society’s case officer: ‘The plan was to erect 5,060 metres of fencing on the common and to place gates on all the public footpaths and bridleways. We objected, along with Eype Residents’ Society, Symondsbury Parish Council, the Ramblers’ Association and several residents. We said that the fencing would change the character and use of the common and restrict public access there. We are delighted that the public inquiry inspector, Mr Chris Frost, and the Secretary of State, Mrs Margaret Beckett, upheld our view. The inspector concluded that “the present benefit of the common to the neighbourhood stems from its openness and the freedom to gain access via various public rights of way, as well as the appearance of the landscape in visual, cultural and biological terms. The appearance of the proposed fence and the physical barrier that it would introduce would not only impede access … but would also separate the common from the highway and subdivide the common … which would not benefit the neighbourhood’.

‘It is wonderful that this common will remain open, unenclosed and fully accessible’, Nicola declares.




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Weaverham’s vital greenspace saved
6 May 2004

Lakehouse Field, Weaverham, in 2001 looking towards the main shopping area. Photo: Anthony Daffern

We have helped to save the seven-acre Lakehouse Field in Weaverham, near Northwich in Cheshire, for public enjoyment, by assisting one of our members, the Weaverham Trust, in registering the land as a village green and thus saving it from development. 

Our case officer, Nicola Hodgson, has commented: ‘The Weaverham Trust fought a long campaign to get the land put on the register.  It applied to the registration authority, Cheshire County Council, as long ago as December 2001.  There were rumours that the land was to be developed and the trust was formed to save it.  When the council dragged its feet, the trust demonstrated local support by submitting a 1,100-signature petition.  At last, on 29 March 2004, after numerous meetings and obtaining counsel’s opinion, the council’s rights-of-way committee resolved to register the land.   

‘Now Lakehouse Field will be added to the village greens register and can continue to be enjoyed for community activities and informal recreation for ever.  The Open Spaces Society is delighted to have played a part in rescuing this vital, much-loved open space.  We congratulate the Weaverham Trust for its persistence,’ Nicola declares.

Adds Anthony Daffern, chairman of the Weaverham Trust: ‘We are most grateful to the Open Spaces Society for its support throughout this long battle.  Without the society’s constant encouragement we might well have given up.  Now we can celebrate a great victory.’

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Beating the bounds on Spring Common, Huntingdon
26 April 2004

The Open Spaces Society wishes the campaigners for Spring common good cheer and good luck when they gather at Spring Common on Sunday 16 May to beat the bounds of the common. The campaigners are steadfast and resolute in their battle for the common and an example to us all.

*****   Meet at Ambury Road layby at 11am on Sunday 16 May 2004   *****

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We fight wind turbines on common land
26 April 2004
 

Looking up Borrowdale in Cumbria: the Whinash wind turbines would be on the ridge to the right. Photo: Kyle Blue

We have objected strongly to the plan to site 27 wind turbines on hilltop common land at Whinash near Tebay in Cumbria.

The erection of these huge turbines on fells close to the Lake District and Howgills will devastate this beautiful, tranquil landscape.

This area is certainly of national park quality, as recognised by government reports in the 1940s. If it had been designated as a park, as it should have been, the wind turbines would be outlawed.

Because the development is on registered common land, the consent of the Secretary of State for Environment is needed. As the top pressure-group on common land, the Open Spaces Society has been consulted and we have objected most strongly.

We consider this to be a gross abuse of common land, which is ancient, open land, on which the public will soon have the right to walk under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, and commoners have the right to graze animals.

The society will join with the Council for National Parks, Friends of the Lake District and countless other organisations in opposing this scheme.

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Calling all path-users in Torbay
7 April 2004

Our local correspondent, Ron Lovell for Torbay in Devon, would like to hear from anyone who uses public rights of way in Torbay, as he is helping the council to get its definitive map up to date and all the paths in good order.  If you have walked in Torbay please click here for questionnaire.  We should be most grateful if you would print it, and when completed, post it to Ron Lovell at the address given at the top of the questionnaire.

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Vital path in Norfolk saved
31 March 2004

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Fighting for ancient Ketton way
16th March 2004

		We are fighting plans by Castle Cement Ltd to extend Ketton Quarry in Rutland, and to move the lovely Ketton footpath E229, part of the Hereward Way, from its old, direct route, with wide open views, to a circuitous hedged-in path with restricted views.
the route at present	photo: Tim Hawkins
		If Rutland County Council approves this, it will shoot itself in the foot, because the Hereward Way is an important visitor attraction. We are working with local members to kill this pernicious proposal.
the proposed diversion	photo: Tim Hawkins

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Plymouth's path-failures
25 February 2004

We have complained to Plymouth City Council’s Monitoring Officer⁽¹⁾ that the council is failing to carry out its legal duty on public rights of way.

Says our general secretary, Kate Ashbrook: ‘Our members have complained to us that Plymouth still does not have an official map of rights of way, despite a duty contained in the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to prepare one.  That means that public paths are not recorded and no one can know where they are.  Yet public paths are highways in law, just like any road.  Without an official map, Plymouth’s paths can be built on and blocked and no one will know.  Plymothians are being treated as second-class citizens.  The city’s wonderful heritage of ancient ways will be lost, all because the council has failed to carry out its duty.

‘The council had two officers dealing with public rights of way, and they made a small start at producing the map.  They added fewer than 20 paths out of about 750 already identified by volunteers.  Then both staff left and the budget was cut to one post–which is currently vacant.  Of course one post is grossly inadequate to deal with all the duties relating to public paths.  So we have written to the Monitoring Officer, Maria Smith, who has a duty to bring this matter to the attention of every member of the council.  They will have to meet to consider the monitoring officer’s report and decide what action to take,’ explains Kate.

‘Last June I wrote to the council leader, Mr Tudor Evans, about this, and did not even receive the courtesy of a reply.  Public paths are not only part of Plymouth’s history, but they also encourage visitors to this beautiful city.  So Plymouth is missing out on vital tourist income if it keeps its paths a close secret and allows them to be built on by default,’ Kate concludes.

 ⁽¹⁾  Every council has a Monitoring Officer, appointed under section 5 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989.  Under section 5 2) of that act it is that officer’s duty, ‘if it at any time appears to him that any proposal, decision or omission by the authority…has given rise to a contravention by the authority…of any enactment, or rule of law, or of any code of practice…or maladministration, to prepare a report to the authority’.

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Grendon footpath to remain
25 February 2004

We have saved Grendon footpath TF3, seven miles east of Northampton from being shifted. The plan was to divert 286 metres of a straight route onto a curved route to the south, 411 metres long.

The order was made in 1998 under section 257 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, planning permission having been granted in August 1996 to RMC Aggregates Ltd for sand and gravel extraction at Grendon Lakes. The Open Spaces Society and the Ramblers’ Association objected and were represented at the public inquiry last August by Jean Perkins and Bob Coles respectively.

Spelt out