Village green successes
We are delighted to announce the recent registration of three new town/village greens following successful campaigns by members of the society: After a two-year battle by Chris Faulkner-Gibson, on behalf of Colston Estate Community Association (CECA), to save land at Colston’s Field, Frome Valley, Bristol, it was registered as a town/village green in July 2017.…
Read MoreWe help to save part of Northumberland common
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has refused to grant an application under section 19 of the Commons Act 2006, to deregister a small area of land on Allendale Common, at Spartylea in Northumberland. The land was adjacent to a dwelling at Clayhole, which had been owned by the applicant, Mr…
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We welcome Kent County Council’s plan for country parks
We have welcomed Kent County Council’s new plan for its country parks* but have warned that the council must take care, in making them financially self-sustaining, not to allow unsuitable commercial activities there. The consultation on the Kent Country Parks strategy 2017-2021 is open until Monday 11 September. (You can respond here.) We are pleased…
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Bedford Council forced to back down on path changes
Our Bedford local correspondent, Brian Cowling, has forced Bedford Borough Council to withdraw its proposals to move the routes of 13 public footpaths, in the parishes of Ravensden, Thurleigh and Wilstead, because of errors in the formal orders. Brian objected to the proposals because he considered that they would be damaging for public enjoyment, and…
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Anger at decision to allow seizure of common land at Haven Green, Ealing
The Open Spaces Society and the Friends of Haven Green are furious that the Environment Secretary has approved a retrospective application from Ealing Council to use part of Haven Green common as a cycle hub, and to deregister 188 square metres of the common. The decision follows a four-day public inquiry held in March and…
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A green Brexit must include more opportunities for public access
We have welcomed the pledge from the Environment Secretary, Michael Gove, to deliver a green Brexit (speech, ‘The Unfrozen Moment: delivering a green Brexit’, 21 July), but have called for this to include support for greater public access to the countryside. Michael Gove speech did not mention recreation or public access in his speech but,…
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We welcome designation of Lake District as World Heritage Site
As Britain’s leading pressure-group for open spaces and common land, we welcome the announcement that the Lake District National Park will be added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. The society’s chairman, Graham Bathe(1), said: ‘This announcement brings the fullest recognition that the Lake District is a cultural landscape of global importance, forged by the interplay…
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Walkers’ groups fight plan to close valuable town-centre path in High Wycombe
The Open Spaces Society and the Buckinghamshire Ramblers have opposed a plan by Wycombe District Council to close part of a valuable footpath in High Wycombe’s town centre. The council wants to impose a Public Spaces Protection Order(1) (PSPO) on the path, which would close it to public use. It claims that the path is…
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A new deal for public access post-Brexit
‘Agricultural funds post Brexit should pay for more and better public access.’ So declared the Open Spaces Society’s vice-president, Paul Clayden, at the society’s annual general meeting in London on Thursday 6 July. ‘The government has promised that the current level of agricultural support will be maintained until the next election. This means that there…
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London Council in ‘unprecedented’ move to exploit open space
A London Council has made an ‘unprecedented’ move to make money out of holding events on a flagship open space. Lambeth Council’s planning committee on Tuesday evening (4 July) gave blanket approval to a 110-day schedule of music festivals and other events on the 35-hectare half of Clapham Common it owns. The Town and Country…
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