Agenda item

This Item was taken after Item 2 and before Item 4.

Mr Duncan Edwards, Ms Alison Bundock, Ms Lynne Lawrence, Mr Chris Passmore, Mr Tom Cannon, and Ms Katie Rowe (on behalf of BDW Trading Ltd) were in attendance for this item.

1.          The Public Rights of Way and Commons Registration Officer introduced the report and said that the Council had received an application to register an area of land at Bunyards Farm at Allington as a new Town or Village Green from Mr C Passmore, Mr J Willis, Mr T Wilkinson, Cllr P Harper, Mr T Walker, and Mr D Edwards.  The application had been made under Section 15 of the Commons Act 2006 which enabled any person to apply to a Commons Registration Authority to register land as a village green where it can be shown that a significant number of inhabitants had indulged as of right in lawful sports and pastimes on the land for a period of at least 20 years.

2.          The Public Rights of Way and Commons Registration Officer set out the location of the site and informed Members that the site was subject to a planning application which was under consideration by the local authority.  She said this had no relevance on the decision being made in relation to the village green application and the two were separate legal processes.

3.          The Public Rights of Way and Commons Registration Officer set out the evidence that had been submitted in support of the application and the consultations that had been carried out.  She said that objection to the Application had been received from DAC Beachcroft LLP on behalf of the Landowners and BDW Trading Ltd.  She explained that BDW Trading Ltd had a legal interest in the land in the form of an option to purchase and set out the reasons why BDW Trading Ltd believed the application failed to meet the requirements.

4.          The Public Rights of Way and Commons Registration Officer, as set out in the report, explained the legal tests the Council must consider in determining the application, and the outcome of each test based on evidence received and collated.  She said that every single test had to be met for the application to be successful.  She said there were serious disputes within the evidence which officers had not been able to reconcile, and the officers’ recommendation was for a Public Inquiry to be held to enable further consideration of the evidence and oral testimony to be received from witnesses.

5.          Mr Duncan Edwards (Applicant) provided a statement in support of the application.  He said an ecological group had been working to develop a nature route from Allington to Barming and he had been involved in drawing up the facts about the land, during which he had collected 60 witness statements.  Mr Edwards highlighted key points including that fences had deteriorated over the last 20 years, and they were not sufficient to contain livestock.  He said at no point did the owner take action to exclude residents and he believed hay making could be done alongside pastimes.

6.          Ms Alison Bundock, a local resident, provided a statement in support of the application.  She said she had lived in Beaver Road since June 2001 and had accessed the land as an extension of the open space.  She said the land had been used by her family and friends for den building, playing in woods and, since 2011, for dog walking.

7.          Ms Lynne Lawrence provided a statement in support of the application on behalf of a local resident who lived in Cornwall Close.  She said local residents had assumed the right to walk on the land as there was not any private signage to advise otherwise or anyone maintaining the land.  She said the Importance of the land being registered as a village green could not be understated.

8.          Ms Lynne Lawrence, a local resident, provided her own statement in support of the application. Ms Lawrence had lived in Cornwall Close since the spring of 2001 and had been attracted to the site due to its open access and fields nearby and used it for dog walking.  She said many people used the fields for various family activities including nature spotting.  She had never been told not to use the site and the fencing had deteriorated.  She said the area had depth of meaning to the people in the area.

9.          Mr Chris Passmore (Applicant) provided a statement in support of the application.  He said he had been the chief evidence collector and had worked logically around Allington Way to establish which residents had accessed the land before making the application.  He said he had emphasised to residents when asking for their submissions that it was a legal process that could be challenged.  He said more evidence forms could be submitted if required. He said residents who had accessed the land since the 1980s had not been told to leave by the landowner.

10.      Mr Tom Cannon (Local Member) provided a statement in support of the application. He said more evidence could have been gathered and a significant number of residents had and were using the site.  He referred to the google image of an access point included in the report and said that the access points may have changed over the years.

11.      Ms Katie Rowe, on behalf of BDW Trading Ltd provided a statement in objection to the application.  She said that BDW Trading Ltd and the landowners opposed the application and disputed the claims that the land had been used as of right in lawful sports and pastimes for a period of at least 20 years.  BDW Trading Ltd and the landowners supported the officers’ recommendation that a Public Inquiry be taken so that all the evidence could be assessed.

12.      Mr Baldock said he supported the recommendation of a Public Inquiry so that further evidence for the whole period could be obtained in relation to boundaries and fencing, mutual use of the land for horses and recreation, and examples of recreation use.

13.      Mr Baldock proposed, and Mr Dance seconded the recommendation in the report.

14.      Mr Chittenden asked for clarification regarding the planning application on the land and the Public Rights of Way and Commons Registration Officer confirmed if planning consent was granted there was nothing to stop the developer from going ahead, however, this would not be in the developer’s interests in the event that the village green application was accepted at a future date.

15.      The Chairman put the motion set out in paragraph 64 of the report to the vote and it was agreed unanimously.

16.      RESOLVED that a Public Inquiry be held into the case to clarify the issues.