The Ramblers' Association (RA) is preparing to celebrate the third regional instalment of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act (CRoW) tomorrow on Tuesday 14 December. CRoW is the most important piece of legislation to increase public access to the countryside since the establishment of National Parks in 1949, and will give everyone a legal ‘right to roam’ in the Central Southern region of England.
Covering Berkshire, Dorset, Wiltshire, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight and parts of Somerset and Gloucestershire, CRoW will bring unprecedented access to some of our most beautiful and dramatic landscapes for the very first time. Allowing people a legal right to walk responsibly over open, uncultivated country will encourage even more walking tourism to rural areas, already estimated to be worth more than £6 billion per year.
The RA has been at the forefront of a campaign, dating back over a century, to gain wider public access to open country. Commencement of access has already successfully taken place in two regions, the Lower North West and South East of England in September. Tuesday 14 December is the third step towards protecting access to millions of acres of countryside for the enjoyment of quite recreation throughout England and Wales.
The CRoW Act permits access on foot to mountain, moor, heath, down and common land, but specifically excludes cultivated farmland and gardens while protecting privacy and allowing sensible restrictions for nature conservation and land management. Freedom to roam will bring benefits to walkers, but will also promote the interests of rural communities, whilst landowners will benefit from reduced liability on their land.
Nick Barrett, Chief Executive of the RA, said, “These landscapes are as much a part of our national heritage as structures like Stonehenge. For many the joy of walking is about getting off the beaten track; everybody in this country now has a right to do just that. I hope people will now seize the opportunity to discover the fantastic areas of heath and down Central Southern England has to offer”
“That future generations will have this unprecedented access to open country is testament to the extraordinary dedication of many thousands of ordinary people. They would be the first to recognise that with rights come responsibilities. I am confident the respect and love walkers have for the countryside will prove that this is a wise, fair and beneficial piece of legislation.”
