Archived decisions

ENJOYING THE COUNTRYSIDE - DEVELOPING A STRATEGIC APPROACH TO THE DELIVERY AND PROMOTION OF WIDER ACCESS TO THE HAMPSHIRE COUNTRYSIDE

1. Members will be aware that the Countryside and Rights of Way Act contains (inter alia) new provision for public access to the countryside. It places new obligations on County Councils, and also provides new opportunities supported by additional funding through Standard Spending Assessment (SSA), to improve access to the countryside. The Cabinet is anxious to utilise the opportunities presented by the new legislation and the newly formed Recreation and Heritage Department, to build on the County Council's national reputation for its approach to conserving the countryside and yet making it more accessible to local communities. Accordingly, it has endorsed a number of initiatives, the details of some of which are set out below.

2. As required by the legislation, the County Council is currently establishing a local access forum comprising, amongst others, land owners/managers and recreational users of land to advise the Council on improvements to public access for the purposes of open air recreation and the enjoyment of the area. The Cabinet has suggested that the forum should consider the approach to be taken to improving rights of way and that this be preceded by some analysis of use and provision. In addition, the County Council has bid successfully to be one of the few national pilots for the Integrated Access Demonstration Programme (IADP). This three year pilot will consider an integrated approach to countryside access and will concentrate particularly on the links between urban communities and the countryside in South East Hampshire. The programme will be delivered by a series of demonstration projects with the outcomes and lessons learned applied elsewhere within the County and disseminated nationally.

3. The Cabinet has also agreed that the County Council should provide help in the dissemination of information to local communities and landowners directly affected in the new mapping process required by the legislation. Members will be well aware that the issue of mapping land as open access is an extremely sensitive one and whilst it is essentially the responsibility of the Countryside Agency to oversee the process, the Cabinet feels that the County Council can play a valuable role in raising public awareness in the matter. The County Council itself will, of course, be affected in this regard both as landowner and highway authority.

4. Enhanced access to the countryside is a major new initiative and the County Council will be supported by the valuable work of the IADP National Pilot Project and advice from the local access forum to ensure that the public gets the best from the rights of way and access network in Hampshire.

5. The Executive Member for Recreation and Heritage will continue the task of developing both short and long term strategies to make the most effective use of the new funding available through SSA for work in this important area of the County Council's activity.

5nR570702