Hampshire County Council Item 10

Regulatory Committee

18 April 2007

Application for a Public Path Diversion Order for part of

Footpath Nos. 17 and 18 in the Parish of East Woodhay

Report of the Director of Recreation and Heritage

Contact: Andrew Jones: Ext 6891 E-mail: [email protected]

Orders for the Diversion of Footpaths and Bridleways may be made under Section 119
of the Highways Act 1980, as amended by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981,
in the following circumstances:-

"Where it appears to a council as respects a footpath or bridleway in their area
(other than one that is a trunk road or a special road) that,

in the interests of the owner, lessee or occupier of land crossed by the path or way

or

of the public,

it is expedient that the line of the path or way, or part of that line, should be diverted (whether on to land of the same or of another owner, lessee or occupier), the council may, subject to subsection (2) below, by order made by them and submitted to and confirmed by the Secretary of State, or confirmed as an unopposed order,:

(a) create, as from such date as may be specified in the order, any such new footpath or bridleway as appears to the council requisite for effecting the diversion; and

(b) extinguish, as from such date as may be so specified in accordance with the provisions of subsection (3) below, the public right of way over so much of the path or way as appears to the council requisite as aforesaid.

An order under this section is referred to in this Act as a 'public path diversion order'."

Members must be satisfied that the diverted route will not be substantially less convenient to the public, and must have regard to the effect that a diversion will have on the enjoyment of the path as a whole.

1. Summary

1.1 Hampshire County Council has received an application to divert parts of Footpath Nos.17 and 18 in the Parish of East Woodhay, as shown on the attached large scale plan.

1.2 It is proposed that the application for diversion of parts of East Woodhay Footpath Nos.17 and 18 be approved under Section 119 of the Highways Act 1980, as amended by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, on the grounds that the diversion is in the interests of the public.

2. Parties to the Application

2.1 The application has been made by Mr James Anderson of `Hayes', East Woodhay, Hampshire RG20 0AN.

2.2 Mr Anderson is the freehold owner of all land covered by the current proposal, with
the exception of the access driveway leading to `Hayes' south of Point B. The owner of this narrow strip of land is unknown - the driveway is not registered with the Land Registry and no local residents have appeared to claim ownership to it. The previous owners of `Hayes', Colonel & Mrs William Leigh, signed an affidavit in March 2001 stating that they had maintained and used "the southern accessway" (shown shaded blue on the attached plan) as their own land since 1992 and were not aware of any competing claims to this strip of land. Solicitors for the applicant have lodged a caution against first registration with the Land Registry in respect of the driveway to the south of Point B. The applicant therefore considers himself to be the unencumbered owner of this unregistered parcel of land.

2.3 Robert Adams Architects, of 9 Upper High Street, Winchester, Hampshire SO23 8UT have been appointed as agents by the landowner to process his application.

2.4 MacFarlanes, of 10 Norwich Street, London EC4A 1 BD has been appointed by the landowner to deal with any legal matters arising from this application.

3. The existing routes and proposed diversions

3.1 Current Alignment

3.1.1 The section of the Definitive Alignment of East Woodhay Footpath No.18 affected by this proposal commences at Point A (GR 440014 162152), at a stile on the
western edge of a meadow, and then proceeds in a generally north easterly direction across this meadow to a junction with East Woodhay Footpath No 17 at Point B
(GR 440172 162240) on a driveway leading north to `Hayes'.

3.1.2 The length of East Woodhay Footpath No.18 affected by these proposals is approximately 195 metres.

3.1.3 The section of the Definitive Alignment of East Woodhay Footpath No.17 affected by this proposal commences at Point B (GR 440172 162240) on a driveway leading north to `Hayes', and continues eastwards along a paved farmyard access track to a Y-junction with a further section of East Woodhay Footpath No.17 at Point C
(GR 440206 162240).

3.1.4 The length of East Woodhay Footpath No.17 affected by these proposals is approximately 35 metres.

3.2 Proposed Alignment

3.2.1 It is proposed that the sections of East Woodhay Footpath Nos.17 and 18 detailed above (labelled A-B and B-C) should be replaced by a single footpath that follows the route currently in use by the public (shown as a red dashed line A-E-F-D on the attached plan). This commences at a new kissing gate at Point A (GR 440014 162152) and then continues east north eastwards across the meadow to a further kissing gate at Point E (GR 440174 162192). It then crosses the driveway to Point F (GR 440180 162192), before continuing east and then north along a paved farmyard access track to rejoin East Woodhay Footpath No.17 at Point D (GR 440202 162204).

3.2.2 The length of the proposed diversion between Points A, E, F and D will be approximately 200 metres.

3.2.3 The proposed footpath will have a width of 2.0 metres throughout its length.

4. Background to the application

4.1 This application has been made by the landowner in order to facilitate the redevelopment of former farm buildings immediately north of the section of footpath between points A and B.

4.2 The applicant is also keen to ensure that the alignment shown on the Definitive Map of public rights of way accurately reflects the route currently used by members of the public on the ground.

5. The benefits to the public

It is felt that the proposed changes to the alignment of East Woodhay Footpath Nos.17 and 18 will benefit the public in the following respects:

5.1 The route allegedly used by walkers for some time (and certainly in current usage) will be formalised.

5.2 The existing stiles at Points A and E will be replaced with kissing gates of an approved design, in order to improve access for those walkers with limited mobility.

5.3 The length of the proposed diversion A-E-F-D (200 metres) is slightly shorter than the equivalent section of the current alignment A-B-C (230 metres) and provides improved access east and south on the lower sections of East Woodhay Footpath No.17.

6. Summary of Consultation

The proposal was sent out for formal consultation on 16^th January 2007 to the following representative groups, with the request that any comments should be submitted to the County Council within a period of six weeks:

6.1 Local Member - Councillor John Maxwell
Councillor Maxwell has confirmed that he has no objection to this proposal.

6.2 Basingstoke & Deane District Council
The Senior Planning Officer of B&DBC has confirmed that they have no objection to this proposal.

6.3 East Woodhay Parish Council
East Woodhay Parish Council has not commented on this proposal.

6.4 Rights of Way Area Officer
The Rights of Way Area Officer for North West Hampshire is in favour of this proposal.

6.5 HCC - Highways Management
Highways Management has not commented on this proposal.

6.6 HCC - Environment Department
Environment Department has not commented on this proposal.

6.7 Hampshire County Archivist
Ordnance Survey 6" First Edition Maps of 1873 were consulted, but no evidence was found that would indicate that higher rights may have existed over the route to be diverted.

6.8 The Ramblers' Association
The Ramblers' Association has confirmed that they have no objection to this proposal.

6.9 The Open Spaces Society
The Open Spaces Society has confirmed that they have no objection to this proposal.

6.10 Land Access & Recreation Association (LARA)
LARA has confirmed that they have no objection to this proposal.

6.11 National Farmers Union
The National Farmers Union has confirmed that they support this proposal, as it will allow agricultural development of the site without loss of public amenity.

6.12 Cyclists Touring Club
The Cyclists Touring Club has not commented on this proposal.

7. Comments on Consultation Replies

7.1 Of the responses received from the consultation exercise, all are either in favour of the proposal, or have no objection to it.

8. Criteria for Assessment of the Proposal

8.1 The Council, as a Highway Authority, has the power to make a Public Path Diversion Order, if it is considered expedient to do so in a particular case.

8.2 Section 119(2) of the Highways Act 1980 requires that a Diversion Order should not be made unless the new termination point is substantially as convenient to the public as the existing termination point.

8.3 Section 119(6) of the Highways Act 1980 requires that a Diversion Order should not be confirmed unless the new path or way will not be substantially less convenient to the public in consequence of the diversion and that it is expedient to confirm the order having regard to the effect which:

8.3.1 the diversion would have on public enjoyment of the path or way as a whole;

8.3.2 the coming into operation of the order would have as respects other land served by the existing public right of way; and

8.3.3 any new public right of way created by the order would have as respects the land over which the right is so created and any land held with it.

9. Conclusion

Officers are of the opinion that the proposed diversion satisfies the criteria required by section 119 of the Highways Act 1980 and that it is expedient for the Council to make an order in that:

9.1 The proposal for diversion of East Woodhay Footpath Nos.17 and 18 is in the interests of the public, as it will ensure that the route currently in use by the public is formalised and recorded on the Definitive Map as a public right of way.

9.2 The proposed diversion will not be substantially less convenient than the existing route, as the diverted section A-E-F-D (230 metres) is slightly shorter than the equivalent section of the current route A-B-C (200 metres), and also provides a more direct link with other parts of the network.

9.3 The proposed diversion will not affect the enjoyment of the path as a whole,
as the new route will provide views of the surrounding countryside and conditions underfoot (meadow and paved farmyard access tracks) similar to those enjoyed on the definitive alignment.

9.4 The Area Team Leader for North West Hampshire has assessed the works that are necessary to bring the new route up to an acceptable specification and the applicant has agreed to carry out and/or fund these improvements.

9.5 It is unlikely that there will be any increase in the cost of maintaining the route at public expense.

10. Recommendation

It is recommended that an Order be made for:

10.1 The diversion of section A-B of Footpath No.18 and section B-C of Footpath No.17, both in the Parish of East Woodhay, from the current definitive alignment to a revised route running from a new kissing gate at Point A on the attached plan, through a second kissing gate at Point E, across the driveway to Point F and then along a paved farmyard access track to rejoin the rights of way network at Point D.

Section 100 D - Local Government Act 1972 - background papers

The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and which have been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of the report.

NB the list excludes: (1) published works and (2) documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act:

File: ATJ/DIV/ East Woodhay Footpath Nos.17 & 18
Rights of Way Office, Mottisfont Court, Winchester