Archive for March 2023
Environment minister breaks government pledge to save historic paths
We have condemned the Environment Secretary’s decision to break the government’s undertaking last year to ditch the 2026 deadline for recording lost paths in England. Thérèse Coffey has now decided not to revoke the deadline but to extend it for five years. The deadline means that on 1 January 2031, public rights over thousands of…
Read MoreAmenity groups slate flood scheme on Kendal’s common land
With the Friends of the Lake District we have slated the decision of a planning inspector to allow flood-defence works on Gooseholme Common in the heart of Kendal in Cumbria. The application, made by the Environment Agency, was for permanent flood-defence works including walls, kerbs, floodgates, subterranean culvert works with associated hardstanding, access hatches, and…
Read MoreOpen spaces and paths: a new guide to protection
Introducing a new guide to help local councils protect precious green spaces and paths, Kate Ashbrook, our general secretary, says: ‘Often town, parish and community councils (local councils) are unaware of all the extensive powers they have to deal with problems on open spaces and paths. ‘These powers are scattered in different and sometimes obscure…
Read MoreLost in the detail?
Our general secretary, Kate Ashbrook, criticises the Westminster government for its lack of action on public access. At the end of February we still awaited action on access in the environmental land management scheme (ELMS). Defra officials are now seeking our views, but it doesn’t feel like the outcome will amount to much. In December,…
Read MoreGreenfields Recreation Ground to stay green
The supreme court has held that Greenfields Recreation Ground in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, cannot be developed, despite the grant of planning permission (now quashed) by Shropshire Council. This is because the land is subject to a statutory trust, and the supreme court ruled that the council failed to follow the legal procedure for disposal of public…
Read MoreBarking Tye common: a useful judgment
We challenged in the high court the decision of an inspector, appointed by the environment secretary, to grant consent under section 38 of the Commons Act 2006 for works on common land at Barking Tye in mid-Suffolk. Although he dismissed our appeal, the judge, Sir Ross Cranston, provided important clarification on the principles to be…
Read MoreBetter access to popular path on Purbeck coast
Harry Alexander, one of our local correspondents, has persuaded Dorset Council to install an accessible gate on a popular path between Worth Matravers and the South West Coast Path, between Chapman’s Pool and St Aldhelm’s Head. The new gate opens up the obstructed path, which was blocked by a difficult stile, and a padlocked gate…
Read MoreCafé plans for Bristol Downs abandoned
We have welcomed the decision to abandon plans for a café on the downs in Bristol close to the Avon Gorge. The society criticised the Downs Committee[1] , which put forward the plans, for squandering public money on unlawful and undesirable projects. Meanwhile the committee is failing adequately to carry out its statutory responsibilities. The Downs…
Read More