Posts by Abbie Cavendish
Don’t kill Kilvey Hill
This was our message to Swansea Council at a rally on Sunday (24 March). Kate Ashbrook, our general secretary, joined more than 300 local people on top of Kilvey Hill, north-east of Swansea at a rally against plans by Skyline Swansea Ltd for a vast tourist development, which includes a restaurant and visitor centre, skyswing,…
Read MoreUrban green space report misses trick
We have welcomed the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee’s letter to the Defra secretary, Stephen Barclay, with its findings on its inquiry into urban green spaces. The committee concluded that ‘these vital parts of communities are under serious threat’ and in need of urgent action to reverse their national decline, despite their immense environmental…
Read MoreCoastal land in Cornwall registered as common
We welcome Cornwall Council’s decision to grant two applications to register common land on the north coast of Cornwall. One of the applications was made by the society and the other by Tomas Hill who has a keen interest in common land. The land, which is owned by the National Trust, comprises just over 170…
Read MoreAccess is a vital element of the Sustainable Farming Scheme in Wales
We have responded to the Welsh government’s consultation on the Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS), whereby money is given to landowners and farmers to deliver public goods. We warmly welcome the SFS and are pleased that it offers landowners and farmers the opportunity to provide improved public access. We believe this public good to be of…
Read MoreLand restored as common on Dartmoor
We welcome the Planning Inspectorate’s decision to grant the society’s two applications to register as common three parcels of rough grassland near Blackdown Common, Mary Tavy, in the Dartmoor National Park. Two of the parcels are adjacent to each other, east and south of Willsworthy car park. Together, these amount to about 33 hectares. The…
Read MorePath-block shock
In January, the BBC revealed the shocking results of its survey on the state of public paths in England and Wales. Our general secretary, Kate Ashbrook, comments on these findings. Paths, it showed, are blocked at 32,000 points, that is one obstruction every four and a half miles—and the problems are growing. Seventy three of…
Read MoreCourt threat causes Cornwall Council to climb down over unrecorded path
We are delighted that Cornwall Council has capitulated in the face of court action, led by the British Horse Society (BHS), against the council’s failure to register applications to add public paths to the official map as required by law. [1] The BHS had applied in September 2023 for a path at Altarnun (11 kms…
Read MoreThe disposal of open space on Swansea’s Kilvey Hill
Swansea Council advertised notice of disposal of open space on Kilvey Hill, under section 123(2A) of the Local Government Act 1972, in anticipation of the council granting planning permission for the massive Skyline leisure development on the hill. The Open Spaces Society was among many objectors, arguing that the disposal was contrary to the council’s…
Read MoreWe help to save Mucklewick Hill, Shropshire, from disfigurement
We are delighted that Shropshire Council’s planners have rejected an application for a 15-metre-high telecommunications mast with ancillary equipment on Mucklewick Hill in the Shropshire Hills National Landscape. The hill is 15 miles south-west of Shrewsbury, and six miles north-east of Bishops Castle in south Shropshire. The society, the Shropshire Area of the Ramblers, and…
Read MoreOur new representative in Spelthorne Borough, Surrey
We have appointed Ashley Redsell as our local correspondent to watch over the commons of Spelthorne Borough in Surrey. Ashley will keep a close eye on developments in Spelthorne, and where attempts are made to take over common land, he will work with the borough and county councils, and local residents to prevent this destruction. …
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