Do you own land? Do the locals use your land as open space for walking their dogs or for taking the air or for games or some other recreational use or pastime? If so you may inadvertently be the owner of a village green and unable to stop those uses in the future.
In R (on the application of Lewis) v Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council & anor, the Supreme Court confirmed the right of the local inhabitants of Redcar to register Coatham Common as a village green under section 15 of the Commons Act 2006 despite sharing the common with golfers.
The local inhabitants had been using the land for at least 20 years "as of right" for activities such as dog walking and playing with their children. The decision of the Supreme Court means that any open space used by local inhabitants for the requisite period may be the subject of a successful village green application.
Owners of open space should be careful to make sure that if local inhabitants use their land the use is not "as of right". Clear and unequivocal signs granting permission must be displayed.
If you require any further advice or assistance please contact
David Chapman or a member of the Property team at Wortley Byers on 01277
268348 or dchapman@wortleybyers.co.uk.
