Representatives of the key national interests in public rights of way have united in delivering a ground-breaking set of recommendations to Government designed to improve the law and procedures concerning old public rights of way.

The Group’s report - Stepping Forward - is a blueprint for wide-ranging change that would deliver real benefits for the general public, landowners, farmers and local authorities alike.

Old rights of way have long been one of the most difficult areas of access legislation. At present, many old rights of way such as footpaths and bridleways are not recorded on the official ‘definitive map’ held by county councils. The result is a lack of clarity for the public about which routes they can use, plus periodic concerns for landowners when claims to record such routes suddenly arise.

To look for solutions, Natural England convened a special working group at the end of 2008, with balanced representation from the main interest groups in public rights of way. The result is a report which has achieved unexpected consensus among all of the Group’s 15 members.

Squarely in the Group’s sights is the bureaucracy of the existing procedures for recording pre-1949 rights of way. The Group identifies a range of ways to make the procedures simpler, quicker, more flexible, and more cost effective. It also suggests measures to make them less adversarial and more constructive, with new scope for authorities to agree practical solutions with occupiers where old routes conflict with modern land use.

The Group has also recommended retaining the 2026 “cut-off” date contained in current legislation whereby pre-1949 routes that have not been recorded by 2026 will be extinguished. Fixing a date will deliver greater certainty in the future about where public rights exist, while the Group’s detailed recommendations will help ensure that the process to record or otherwise protect useful or potentially useful routes can be completed ahead of the 2026 deadline.

Natural England has forwarded the Group’s 32 unanimous recommendations to Government, which will now consider its findings.

Poul Christensen, Chair of Natural England, said:

“Rights of way are a vital means by which people can enjoy our beautiful countryside and engage with nature, farming and their local heritage. Through this remarkable consensus, the Group has shown how these benefits can be secured for future generations while removing much of the uncertainty, bureaucracy and cost currently involved in the recording process – and promoting practical solutions to potential conflicts. The Group’s Stepping Forward report is a triumph of pragmatism, fairness and commonsense and we commend it to Government unreservedly”

Copies of the Stepping Forward report can be downloaded via the Natural England website at http://naturalengland.etraderstores.com/NaturalEnglandShop/NECR035