The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (CROW Act) gave people new rights to walk on areas of access land. These new areas of open country include areas of mountain, moor, and heath and down, as well as land classified as registered common land.
The CROW act was rolled out across the country during 2004-2005 with all open access land being open by October 31st 2005.
Responsible use of the new access land is encouraged and access land will be identified using the Open Access symbol, although some national restrictions do apply which limit recreational activities to those enjoyed on foot (which excludes activities such as camping, cycling, horse riding, motor sports and off road vehicles, except where these rights already existed).
People now have the chance to enjoy about 935,000 hectares of open country, much of which was previously off-limits.
This exciting time for countryside access nationally, sees the creation of 1235 hectares of open access land within the Doncaster borough. All of this access land lies within Natural England's Thorne Moors, part of their Humberhead Peatlands National Nature Reserve (NNR), a nature conservation site of international significance. Natural England also planned to dedicate a further 2328 hectares of the NNR as Access Land in 2008.
In 2005 Natural England and Doncaster Council successfully applied for Access Management Grant Scheme funding for the recruitment of a new Open Access Officer to address the significant developments in access rights brought about by the CROW Act. The role of the officer is to create and implement an Open Access Management Plan for the Borough’s access land and to actively encourage responsible use of the access land by a broad spectrum of visitor groups.
A draft plan was completed in 2006 and was made available to user groups and the general public for consultation. The plan is currently being updated following the consultation period and a revised draft will be available in due course. Details of the feedback received during the consultation and the responses given by the Access Officer can be accessed from the links on the sidebar on the left of this page.
For more information about Open Access or about the Humberhead Peatlands National Nature Reserve see the Natural England's website at:
www.naturalengland.org.uk
Occasionally your rights to go on to some areas of Access land may be restricted by more than the national restrictions referenced above. This may be while work is carried out for safety reasons or during breeding seasons. You can check this website for local restrictions or the Natural England website (see above) for restrictions nationally, but always follow advice and local signs, and be prepared for the unexpected.
Current Restrictions on Access land in the Doncaster Borough: -
National restrictions only
