Island Life Magazine Ltd December 2013/January 2014 | Page 112

coffee break advice. .. Roach Pittis advice Roach Pittis Solicitors, 60-66 Lugley Street, Newport, PO30 5EU t.01983 524431 - e. [email protected] By Emma Gifford Public Rights of Way / Village Greens M embers of the public are able to make a case to the local authority for registering a public right of way where they can provide evidence that a particular path or way has been used by the public as of right for a continuous period of 20 years or more. In similar fashion members of the public can make a case for registering a Town or Village Green by establishing that an area of land has been used by the public for recreation or similar purposes, again for a continuous period of 20 years. This latter process, seeking to register a Town or Village Green, has become popular with objectors to development: 112 www.visitislandlife.com what better way to impede a planning application than to establish that the subject of the development is a public recreation area? Under Section 31(6) Highways Act 1980 it is possible for a land owner to negate any claim of public right of way by filing a written statement accompanied by a map and, until recently, a statutory declaration. These papers are lodged with the local authority, effectively making a public statement that there is no intention on the part of the land owner to dedicate a right of way. The rebuttal has until recently operated for a period of ten years from the date of lodgement. In October this year the procedure under the Highways Act was refined. There is no longer any need to lodge a statutory declaration and, furthermore, the rebuttal operates for 20 years from lodgement rather than 10 years as used to be the case. Of even greater interest, however, is the fact that it is now open to a land owner to deposit a statement and map with the local authority so as prevent any new entitlement to a Village Green. Obviously if the public has already accumu