What is right to roam?

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Access Land in Wiltshire and in Swindon Borough

The Countryside & Rights of Way Act 2000 (CROW) sets out that people shall have the ‘right to roam’ responsibly on foot over the open wild uncultivated mountain, moor, heath, and down of England and Wales subject to certain restrictions. The Countryside Agency and Ordnance Survey have produced maps of the”access land” which came into legal force on 14th December 2004.

Certain types of land are ‘excepted land’ and will not be access land:

• land covered by buildings and their curtilage (surroundings)
• land within 20 metres of any building
• land used as a park or garden
• mines and quarries
• railways
• golf courses, racecourses, aerodromes
• land around water, sewerage, electricity and communications works
• land covered by stock pens
• racehorse gallops

Permitted restrictions

Landowners and their tenants will be able to restrict any access land for up to 28 days each year. They may also restrict dogs from lambing areas for up to six weeks a year and from grouse moors.

Landowners can also apply to the Wiltshire Council and Swindon Borough Council to restrict land for more than the 28 days. Each of these cases will be considered on its merits

English Nature and English Heritage can restrict access land for reasons of nature conservation and heritage site protection. Some 70% of the open country areas are already monitored and managed by English Nature as either Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs)or National Nature Reserves (NNRs).

The Ministry of Defence can restrict access land for reasons of defence and national security. This will apply to large areas of Salisbury Plain where the Army currently train.

Rights of Way, the public footpaths, bridleways, roads used as public paths, and byways open to all traffic are controlled by the Highways Act 1980, and none of the restrictions of the CROW act shown above will apply to these Rights of Way.

Wiltshire Council and Swindon Borough Council are the two bodies responsible for overseeing and administering Wiltshire access land. As required by the CROW act, they have set up this Local Access Forum to help and advise them on the responsible and sensitive implementation and management of this land.

The CA will maintain a website showing the access land and which areas are under restrictions and when these apply.

When the extent of the access land has been determined, it will be shown on the Ordnance Survey (OS) maps as they are reprinted.

Last updated: 16 February 2011