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At the Annual Meeting of the Council held on 26 May
2011 it was agreed, as an efficiency measure, to disband
the Rights of Way Committee and pass its work to the Area
Development Control Sub-Committees, whose terms of reference will
be amended to include dealing with rights of way applications. This
page has been updated to reflect this change, however certain
linked documents remain be updated in due
course. |
Suffolk Coastal ensures that informal consultations on all
applications to
create, divert or extinguish footpaths and
bridleways are carried out before deciding whether to make a
public path order. Proposals are often altered as a result of
consultations and the Council is keen for applicants and consultees
to reach agreement wherever possible.
Opposed applications, or those that do not appear to meet the
statutory criteria, are determined by the Council's Development
Control Sub-Committee covering the relevant area.
What does the sub-committee do?
The Development Control Sub-Committees meet every four weeks.
Their role with regard to rights of way is to consider:
- Applications to create, divert or extinguish public footpaths
or bridleways to which there has been objection during the
consultation process or which may not meet the relevant legal
criteria.
- Public path orders to which there has been objection.
If a sub-committee is considering one of the above we will
send a letter to everyone who has expressed an interest in the
matter - whether it was an objection or in support - letting them
know when and where the sub-committee will be meeting to discuss
the matter. We will also send everyone a copy of the agenda for the
meeting.
How are rights of way applications dealt with at the
sub-committee meeting?
At the meeting there will be the chance for one person from each
of the following groups to speak:
- Objector.
- Interested party.
- Applicant (or an agent on their behalf).
- Other landowners or land occupiers affected by the change.
- Local town or parish council.
- Local district councillor.
In exceptional cases, more than one town or parish council may
be allowed to speak, if the proposal has a significant effect on
more than one parish. More than one objector or interested party
may also be allowed to speak, but only where it is clear that
conflicting views cannot be effectively presented by one
speaker.
We are currently revising our guide to
speaking at rights of way committee meetings
(new window PDF 31KB) to reflect the recent changes. However
the version here explains the process that has been in use until
now, in more detail, and what you have to do if you want to
speak. The new process is expected to remain much the same.
How decisions are made
The
Highways Act 1980 and
the Town & County Planning Act 1990 (new
window) both lay down precise criteria to be met for the
making and confirmation of public path orders. The legislation
is supplemented by advice contained in
Defra's Rights of Way Circular (1/09) (new
window) and other circulars and regulations. The basic
premise is to ensure that appropriate balanced consideration is
given to the impact of changes to the network upon both the
landowner’s or occupier’s interests and the public’s right.
Changes that affect the right of the public to cross private
land and can be contentious and the subject of impassioned debate.
Because of this it is important that the system of making decisions
on changes to the public rights of way network is seen to be open
and impartial, consisting of sound judgements made for justifiable
reasons.
To this end Suffolk Coastal has a
code of practice (new window PDF 48KB)
(which is currently under revision), that sets out clearly the
way in which applications are dealt with including the
consultation process, the roles of Council members and officers,
committee procedures, site visits and what you should do in the
event of a complaint.