Shropshire Farming Talk: Farmers and landowners in limbo
I truly hope that 2025 provides some positive steps forward for farming and rural communities, following another difficult year for the industry in 2024.
On Boxing Day, the government announced its plan to repeal the 2031 cut-off date for adding unrecorded rights of way to the Definitive Map in England, which was set in place by the previous administration.
The 2031 cut-off date was intended to ensure that all public rights of way were officially recognised and recorded by 2031.
With more than 40,000 miles of paths potentially qualifying for inclusion, the task of capturing unrecorded rights of way has been an ongoing process for local authorities, which started 75 years ago with the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act.
These unrecorded paths, some dating back centuries remain valuable to walkers, cyclists, and equestrians, with ministers also planning to establish nine new river walks and three national forests.
It is clear that even though many farmers and landowners have long supported responsible access, the government has made this decision without engaging with those who will be affected.
Namely farmers and landowners who will have the uncertainty of a right of way being claimed on their land at any time, which prove costly to defend and can have a huge impacts on existing farming operations and farm diversifications.
It is imperative that countryside access remains both sustainable and respectful of private land.
With over 140,000 miles of public rights of way and 3.5 million acres of public access land across England and Wales, the countryside is far from closed to the public.
Shropshire itself benefits from a network of 5,600 kilometres of public rights of way. That is far enough to get you from Shrewsbury, Shropshire to Shrewsbury, Massachusetts with a few kilometres to spare.
I’m sure that we will see many farmers, land managers, and local authorities continuing to work together to ensure that public access and land management go hand in hand, allowing future generations to benefit from the rich heritage of our countryside.
by Sophie Dwerryhouse – CLA Midlands Regional Director
