Breadcrumbs
Update on Open Access
South East – Provisional map issued 7th October 2002, currently at appeals stage
Lower North West – Provisional map issued 18th November 2002, currently at appeals stage.
Central Southern England – Provisional map issued 23rd May 2003, currently at appeals stage.
Upper North West – Provisional map issued 19th August 2003, currently at appeals stage.
North East – Draft map issued 13th March 2003, consultation on draft map closed 13th June 2003. Provisional map due to be issued autumn 2003.
South West – Draft map issued 13th May 2003, consultation on draft map closed 13th August 2003. Provisional map due to be issued spring 2004.
West – Draft map issued 30th June 2003, consultation closed 30th September 2003. Provisional map due to be issued summer 2004.
East – Draft map issued 2nd September 2003, consultation closes 2nd December 2003.
Appeals areas
The appeal period for mapping area 1 (South East) closed on 7th January 2003. In total 148 appeals have been processed by the Agency, including attendance at 14 hearings.
The appeal period for mapping area 2 (Lower North West) closed on the 18th February 2003. In total, 644 appeals have been processed by the Agency and hearings for this area began on 22nd September 2003.
The appeal period for mapping area 3 (Central Southern England) closed on the 23rd August 2003. The Agency has received 257 appeals at the time of writing, with more to follow.
The public can find out which appeals are live by accessing the Planning Inspectorate website at: www.planning-inspectorate.gov.uk/access
Local Access Restrictions
The Regulations on local access restrictions are now expected to be laid in early October, and to come into force by the end of the month. The Agency’s statutory guidance to the other ‘relevant authorities’, which must reflect the detailed content of the regulations, is also expected to be submitted to Ministers during October, for their approval.
A major procurement exercise is underway to put in place a national contact centre and IT system to assist with local restrictions casework and enquiries. The contract will include the creation and maintenance of a website showing where restrictions are in force throughout England at any given time.
The restrictions casework system will open early in 2004 for applications in the lead areas. Before that happens the Agency will make guidance on the system available to land managers and others wishing to find out more.
The Met Office and ADAS are piloting and validating potential fire risk forecasting models on our behalf. This will help us develop a national fire risk forecasting system to inform relevant authority decisions about fire restrictions under the Act.
Access Management
Following the unanimous advice from NCAF on the need for an Access Management Grant Scheme, a paper was presented to the Agency's Board in July. The Board endorsed the proposal for a time limited grant scheme, with a clear exit strategy to ensure ongoing management. Subsequently, an outline plan was submitted to Defra in August on proposals for a new national initiative, to commence in April 2004. We now await Defra’s response, but, in the meantime, the Agency is in the process of developing a detailed business case.
The Manchester access authority workshop on the 26th September 2003 brought together over 60 representatives of access authorities in mapping areas 1 to 4. This included representatives from several National Park Authorities and Lancashire County Council, who passed on their experiences of access management to the delegates.
The Agency is preparing advice on how best to coordinate the management of the new rights at a local level. This will be based on the findings of the demonstration projects in the Black Mountains and on Grinton Moor as well as the Lancashire Bowland Fells project. Experience from the six Countryside Agency Integrated Access Demonstration Projects (IADPs) will also inform our advice.
Information
Over 3,500 responses were received from the Country Code stakeholder consultation. The text for the new code is now being finalised and the launch will take place in the summer of 2004. The Open Access Symbol and guidance on its use will be available in November 2004.
CLARE STEVENS
September 2003