I’ve always loved a ‘permissive path’ – a route across private land that the owner, manager or tenant has decided voluntarily to open to all. It’s always seemed like the nicest of invitations.
A surprise, a welcome, a generous act, as well as an implied pact between walker and landowner: here is a safe route to use, responsibly. The direct opposite of “get off my land”, it is the action of a farmer or land manager interested in and part of their wider community.
Many permissive paths work well and have done for a significant amount of time, enhancing or connecting our network of public footpaths, byways and bridleways, however unevenly distributed. And there is much to gain in mutual benefit, too. For walkers, perhaps a route that ‘makes sense’ across the land is scenic or interesting, invites curiosity and enquiry into what’s living or growing in a place through the seasons.
- Bridleways: what they are, who can use them - and how we can save threatened bridleways
- Britain's footpaths: why are so many disappearing and how to save a footpath
For land managers, they can introduce a lot of cheer and mutual goodwill: great public relations, a gateway to building understanding and respect for the work and life of the countryside, plus more love for what else lives, or has lived, in a place, historically or ecologically. It can also offer the flexibility of closures or alterations.
Many land managers and farmers are critically aware of the knowledge gap between most people and farming, as well as the need for access to the countryside for all. Many want to share the privilege of the space they live or work in. But it takes a certain amount of goodwill, courage and effort to extend a welcome onto land you are responsible for. Kate Sharp, tenant farmer on the glorious, organic West Town Farm in Devon, owned by semi-retired farmer Andy Bragg, says she loves “to help people enjoy the beautiful countryside with us and have a connection to the farming we do here” through permissive paths.
But she’s been saddened and frustrated by the actions of some, with off-lead dogs misbehaving around livestock, poo not picked up or, weirdly, picked up, bagged, thrown or hung somewhere. West Town Farm operates on ‘Pasture for Life’ principles, grazing animals on 100% rich and diverse pasture. Not only does this restore ecosystems and encourage wildlife, it has positive impacts on human and animal health and wellbeing, carbon and the environment generally. There is no place on it for dog poo, or poo in bags hanging from berry- and wildlife-rich hedgerows.
Kate emphasises the majority of dog walkers use it in a friendly, respectful way, but the problem has got so bad from a few, she’s considering a no-dog policy. By definition, permissive paths are not the same as public footpaths. Permission can be rescinded on a whim, through frustration or a change of heart, ownership or management. They are a precarious gift. Some high-profile recent cases include paths and access revoked after generations of enjoyment; the Bathurst Estate in Cirencester chose to monetise access after 300 years of use while Bridehead Estate in Dorset shut its access after 65 years and a new owner, though this may be reconsidered.
When this can happen, and when a few people spoil things for others, bold moves offer better gateways to long-term solutions and cultural and social change. Peer responsibility can make poo-bag hangers and off-lead uncontrolled-dog owners see the error of their ways.
The new, coded, we-are-all-responsible Right to Roam public access movement comes with guidance, simple education and policy borne out of conversations with farmers and land managers, particularly around responsible dog ownership. It’s a potential game changer – if we are willing to embrace it long term, extend the invitation and accept it in good grace.
Nicola Chester’s new book Ghosts of the Farm: Two Women’s Journeys Through Land, Time and Community is out now (Chelsea Green).
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