Shropshire & Herefordshire – the Last Piece of the Jigsaw!

1st November 2005

T. Wyn Jones

The new right of access to the countryside was completed across England on Monday 31st October 2005 with Shropshire & Herefordshire being some of the last counties to join the fold. This right, for which people have been campaigning for over 100 years, allows people to walk freely across mapped access land without the need to stick to paths.
From the 31st October people have had the chance to enjoy approximately 935 000 hectares of mapped areas of mountain, moor, heath, down and registered common land within England much of which was previously off-limits. This equates to approximately 8% of the total land, whereas in Wales an incredible 21% or 450,000 hectares will have been opened up as a result of this legislation, which came into effect in May of this year.

So what does the new right cover?
The right of access, which is for recreation on foot only, includes walking, sightseeing, bird watching, picnicking, climbing and running. To make sure that the privacy of people who live and work on land is protected, land that is used for a number of specified purposes, for instance as a garden, park, cultivated land, or land covered by buildings is not included. Such land is referred to as "excepted land”.

There is also a series of “general restrictions” which place limits on the activities that can be carried out under the new right. High impact activities, for example cycling, fishing, horse riding, camping or driving a vehicle are not permitted under the Act.

In addition Landowners can restrict or exclude the public from the land that they own for up to 28 days each year for any reason. Also there is a separate system that landowners, and anyone else with a legal interest in the land, can use to apply for restrictions where it is necessary for land management, fire prevention, or public safety.

With regard to dogs and dog walking there are special requirements in the Act. For example dogs must be kept on a short fixed lead of no more than two metres in length between 1 March and 31 July, and at any time in the vicinity of livestock. Landowners also have powers to restrict people with dogs from small enclosures for lambing, and across grouse moors. Owners can also apply to restrict or exclude access on land management or public safety grounds in some circumstances too.
And so as the “Open Access” signs are erected throughout England & Wales (the sign pictures a brown man on a brown hill with a white background) we will wait and see as to whether this legislation is workable in practice and whether it will be sufficient for the campaigners for open access for all.