Commons swap at Brow Moor refused
We have welcomed the decision of an inspector to refuse an exchange of common land in Brontë country at Brow Moor, Haworth, Bradford. Dennis Gillson and Son Ltd (Gillsons) applied to deregister 1.25 hectares of common land on Brow Moor, and replace it with 2.7 hectares about 2 kilometres further south. The application was made…
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All growth, no green?
Our general secretary, Kate Ashbrook, considers the implications of the government’s apparent obsession with growth. In the late 1940s, when the country was on its knees after the second world war, the Labour government nevertheless found room for vital legislation beyond the economic emergency: the National Health Service Act 1946, the Town and Country Planning…
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Tim Crowther, 1934-2024
Our former chairman has died aged 90. Tim was a trustee from 2004 to 2016, and chairman from 2011 to 2014. Tim lived in Weybridge, Surrey, for 60 years. He had a degree in estate management from Wye College and, among other jobs, he was estate manager at Bisham Abbey. He then became editor of…
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Secret access uncovered
The Open Spaces Society has welcomed the decision of His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) not to appeal an order of the first-tier tribunal that it must disclose to the public heritage management plans (HMPs) for country estates benefiting from inheritance tax relief. An application was made by Kieran Foster to HMRC for the HMPs…
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Our five-point plan for 2025
In our recent new-year message we were pleased to set out our top five campaign aims for 2025. We’re calling for: Lost commons to be registerable throughout England. Currently they can only be registered in Cumbria and North Yorkshire, yet landowners can apply to deregister commons throughout England, which is grossly unfair. A mandate on…
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Public-path guillotine to be lifted
We are delighted at the government’s Boxing Day announcement that it intends to abolish the 2031 cut-off for recording public paths[1]. Says Kate Ashbrook, our general secretary: ‘This news is extremely welcome, as thousands of unrecorded paths will be saved from extinction. We are delighted that the government is now demonstrating its commitment to our…
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Bring on Wales’s new national park
We strongly support the new national park in north-east Wales. The society believes that the national park designation will benefit the splendid, varied landscape of this region, its wildlife and culture, and will help to promote responsible public access and enjoyment. However, it has also called for the Welsh government to make sufficient funds available…
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Call for new ‘People’s Charter’ on 75th anniversary of revolutionary national parks and access law
Today (16 December 2024), on the 75th anniversary of royal assent of the revolutionary National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949, the organisations which collectively promoted that law, call for a new vision from government. Hailed as a People’s Charter, the 1949 act was to enable all citizens, no matter their background, to…
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Government’s new planning policies give green spaces the cold shoulder
We have expressed our fears for the future of open spaces in the government’s revised National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) published today (12 December 2024). Says Kate Ashbrook, our general secretary: ‘We called for legal protection and long-term maintenance of urban green space; standards for the amount of green space in development, and a duty on…
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Fencing refused on Norfolk common
We have welcomed the decision to refuse consent for fencing on Shereford Common in Norfolk. This is a small, five-hectare common south of St Nicholas’ church, Shereford (near Fakenham), and largely sandwiched between a country lane and the River Wensum. In August 2023, the Raynham estate, owned by Charles Townshend, sought the consent of the Defra…
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