Contact: Cath Hart ext: Tel: 847221 e-mail: [email protected]

1. Background

1.1 Hampshire Countryside Access Forum is the statutory group which advises the County Council on countryside recreation matters. In 2004, the Forum hosted a half-day conference for Hampshire's Parish and Town Councils, providing information on the Countryside Service's role and promoting greater Parish involvement in access management. The 100 Parish and Town Councils attending were invited to give their views on a potential scheme offering part-funding towards small improvements to rights of way and countryside access. Responses showed a very strong interest and provided a list of typical projects; officers then worked with partners to establish the `Countryside Access Forum Small Grants Scheme' in 2005.

2. Recommendation

2.1 That an additional £10,000 is allocated to the Countryside Access Forum Small Grants Scheme budget from 2008/09, bringing the total budget to £20,000. This additional allocation will be funded from existing resources.

3. Aims and Management

3.1 The scheme enables Parish Councils and others to realise small one-off improvements to countryside access which meet local needs; it achieves this through the provision of funding and guidance. The scheme's current budget is £10,000 per annum.

3.2 Parish Councils and landowners may apply for up to 50% of the cost of projects which improve access, with a maximum grant of £1,000. An information pack gives a pick-list of simple projects, with costs, suppliers and guidance on materials and process. These cover path surfacing and drainage, provision of benches, replacing stiles with kissing gates and producing mapboards and leaflets. Applicants are not limited to these projects, and are encouraged to apply for whatever work is appropriate to meet the needs identified.

3.3 The scheme contributes towards the Corporate Strategy by maximising well-being and enhancing quality of place, and in addition delivers many of the Countryside Access Plan actions. It is thought to be unique nationally and several other authorities have shown an interest in establishing similar schemes.

3.4 The scheme was developed with assistance from Hampshire Countryside Access Forum and is now run jointly with the Forum; decisions are taken by a panel of Forum members and Countryside Service officers.

4. Results for the current year

4.1 In 2007/08, the scheme received 25 applications (representing 1 in 10 Parishes in Hampshire) and has offered total grant funding of £11,500 towards 20 projects. Match funding of £25,200 is expected through these projects, together with an estimated 700 volunteer hours. Three examples of projects funded this year are given below.

4.2 Burghclere Parish Council volunteers and a local farmer have worked together to provide 11 gates and kissing gates on rights of way. These will keep livestock from straying and are much easier for all to use, especially the elderly and those with pushchairs.

4.3 Beaulieu Estate have constructed a new permissive path through woodland alongside the lake, connecting Beaulieu village to the museum and offering an attractive alternative to a difficult on-road route. In common with other Small Grants Scheme projects in the wider New Forest area, the National Park Authority also contributed financially towards this project.

4.4 Alton Town Council and the local group of the Ramblers' Association have published a leaflet encouraging local people to leave their cars at home by showing how existing paths through the town lead straight out into the beautiful countryside on their doorstep.

5. Review

5.1 A review was undertaken in August 2007, incorporating the views of officers and of applicants who had completed projects through the scheme. This showed that the scheme is highly valued by Parish Councils, with high levels of satisfaction in the process and in the results they have obtained. From the Council's perspective, the scheme increases the capacity for locally desired access improvements to be carried out with minimal support from officers and it attracts a considerable amount of match funding and volunteer time in return for a relatively small budget.

5.2 However, the report concluded that, whilst the scheme is successful and is operating at capacity within budget and officer time constraints, it is not yet fulfilling its potential. Further resources would enable the scheme to grant fund more improvements per annum and to act on the opportunities identified to develop the scheme into new areas.

6. Other work with Parish Councils

6.1 This scheme complements other initiatives which invite Parishes to become involved in managing and promoting countryside access.

6.2 A Parish Reference Guide is being produced, in a loose-leaf folder so that changed or new information can be inserted when needed; a web-based version will also be available. There is no known equivalent guide for Parish Councils nationally.

6.3 Officers are working with Hampshire Countryside Access Forum to plan a second conference for Parishes later this year, which will launch the reference guide and offer workshops, displays, demonstrations and some formal presentations.

6.4 The Parish Path Poll was a one day snapshot survey of countryside path use, carried out by Parish Councils using forms and analysis provided by officers. 200 volunteers took part, and saw over 3,300 people on 44 paths, giving an approximate average of 75 people using each path per day Many Parishes were surprised at how well used, and how highly valued, their local path network was, and so this led to an increased understanding of path use by both Parishes and the County Council.

7. Impact Assessment

7.1 The scheme requires applicants to demonstrate that the project proposed responds to local need expressed through individual requests or strategies such as the Parish Plan or Countryside Access Plan, and imposes conditions on grant recipients regarding standards of work. Therefore no group or individual should be disadvantaged by projects funded through this scheme.

8. Financial Implications

8.1 The current budget is £10,000 per annum; an additional £10,000 per annum is sought for future years, bringing the total budget to £20,000. This additional allocation will be funded from existing resources.

9. Legal Implications

9.1 The Highways Act 1980 gives Local Councils (ie Parish and Town Councils) the legal power to maintain footpaths and bridleways.

Links to Corporate Strategy

Yes No

Hampshire safer and more secure for all

Maximising well-being _

Enhancing our quality of place _

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 has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

N.B. the list excludes:

1. Published works.

2. Documents that disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

TITLE LOCATION

Review of Countryside Access Forum Small Grants Scheme Mottisfont Court

Applications to the scheme and related records Mottisfont Court