Hampshire County Council

Regulatory Committee Item 10

14 February, 2008

Dedication of a Bridleway at Emsworth Common, Havant by Portsmouth Water Limited

Report of the Director of Recreation and Heritage

Contact: Sylvia Seeliger, Ext. 6349 [email protected]

Extract from the Highways Act 1980

Section 25(1) - Creation of a Footpath or Bridleway by Agreement

A local Authority may enter into an agreement with any person having the necessary power in that behalf for the dedication by that person of a footpath or bridleway over land in their area...

1 Summary

Hampshire County Council has received an offer from Portsmouth Water Limited to dedicate a public bridleway at a width of 3 metres, as shown on the attached plan. The dedication is made under Section 25 of the Highways Act 1980, as amended by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The dedication offer was made in response to an application to have Havant Footpath 69 recorded as a bridleway on the Definitive Map. The dedication offer has rendered an investigation into the claim unnecessary, and the applicant is content that the claim will not need to be determined if the dedication is completed.

2 Recommendation

The Committee is recommended to accept the dedication with thanks.

3 Description of the new path

3.1 The path is shown on the plan as A-B. It runs from the C422, Emsworth Common Road, to the county boundary with West Sussex, where it connects with West Sussex Bridleway 517. The route runs in a north easterly direction, in a straight line, through an area of well-spaced trees. Part of the route has a surface which consists of scalpings or hoggin, which forms a good and firm surface for both walkers and horse riders.

3.2 The proposed route is currently recorded on the Definitive Map as Havant Footpath 69 and is used by horse riders as well as walkers. It is way marked with a metal `bridleway' sign. This sign has not been put in place by the Countryside Service; it is presumed that it was erected by Havant Borough Council when acting in an agency agreement with Hampshire County Council some years ago. This view is supported by a letter sent by the Clerk of Havant Borough Council to The Clerk of Hampshire County Council on the 18<sup>th</sup> November 1970, stating that Havant's Technical Services Department had been asked to `resign the path'.

3.3 The surfaced part of the path is 1 to 1.5 metres wide, with a ditch to one side, and grass verges. The route is of a consistent width, and varies between 3.5 and 3.9 metres, as scaled from historical Ordnance Survey mapping, which shows its full width. It is 136 metres in length.

3.4 The dedication of Havant Footpath 69 as a bridleway would mean that the separate parts of the route in the two counties would be of the same status.

3.5 Correspondence in files in the Rights of Way Section indicates that it was intended in the late 1960s and early 1970s to record this footpath on the Definitive Map as a bridleway. Portsmouth Water indicated in 1970 that it had no objection to this plan. A dedication now by the company would finally achieve this outcome.

4 Summary of Consultations

4.1 The following persons and bodies have been consulted, namely Councillor D. Gillett, the local member, Havant Borough Council, the Open Spaces Society, the Ramblers' Association, the British Horse Society, the Director of Environment, Highways, and the Rights of Way Area Officer (East). At the time of writing, the following responses have been received:

4.2 The British Horse Society is investigating how many riders in the area have used the path.

4.3 Havant Borough Council has no comments to make.

4.4 The Area Officer commented that the surface does not require any work to make it suitable for horse riders.

4.5 The Ramblers' Association comments that Havant Footpath 69 is an anomaly, and the dedication of bridleway rights over it would `legalise the whole route through to Stansted Park and beyond'. The Ramblers' surveyor noted a metal bridleway sign at the southern end of the route, and that `horse riders probably already use the whole route and...that Havant 69 and West Sussex 517 are at present sufficiently wide and clear and that their cambered surfaces have a firm, packed aggregate finish with good drainage ditches on either side. If this surface condition and drainage is maintained the tracks would remain suitable for both walkers and horse riders'. He further comments that `the legal longer-distance equestrian route which would result would align well with the aims within HCC's Forest of Bere Countryside Access Plan'.

4.6 Hampshire County Council's Forest of Bere Countryside Access Plan (CAP) is part of the Rights of Way Improvement Plan for Hampshire, required to be produced under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. A number of issues have been highlighted by the Forest of Bere CAP, among them an `undersupply of access resource for horse riding and carriage driving'. The dedication of this route as a public bridleway will legitimise the use that is already being made of a long distance route. The good all-weather surface will mean that walkers and horse riders will be able to enjoy their access to the countryside. The Plan identifies that routes in the Forest of Bere are perceived to be in worse condition than those in the rest of the county, and the addition of a bridleway with such a good surface is a gain for both walkers and riders.

5 Financial Implications

Should the Panel accept the dedication of the new route, the maintenance of the surface of the route would become the responsibility of the County Council. The surface is already in a suitable condition for use by the public, with horses and on foot, but there will be an on-going liability to maintain the surface from time to time, which is considered an acceptable responsibility given the current and potential value of this route as a bridleway link. The County Council will be paying the reasonable legal costs of Portsmouth Water Limited in connection with the dedication, which will result in lower expenditure than the processing of a Definitive Map Modification Order.

Section 100 D - Local Government Act 1972 - background papers

The following documents disclose facts or maters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of the report. NB The list excludes: (1) Published works; (2) Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

File: Dedication of a bridleway at Emsworth Common in the Borough of Havant, ref. 731

Rights of Way Office, Mottisfont Court, Winchester