The Access to the Countryside (Exclusions and Restrictions) (England) Regulations 2003

• (3) Where the appellant or the relevant authority have indicated that they wish to be present, or be represented, the inspector shall give the appellant and the authority reasonable notice of the date and time of the inspection and shall afford the appellant and the authority, or their representatives, the opportunity of being present during the inspection.

• (4) The inspector shall not be bound to defer an inspection if the appellant or the relevant authority (or their representative) is not present at the appointed time.

Procedure after inquiry—appeals to be determined by the Secretary of State

52

• (1) This regulation applies where an inquiry has been held for the purposes of any appeal determined by the Secretary of State.

• (2) After the close of an inquiry the inspector shall make a report in writing to the Secretary of State which shall include his conclusions and his recommendations or his reasons for not making any recommendations.

• (3) Where an assessor has been appointed, he shall, after the close of the inquiry, make a report in writing to the inspector in respect of the matters on which he was appointed to advise.

• (4) Where an assessor makes such a report, the inspector shall append it to his own report and shall state in his own report how far he agrees or disagrees with the assessor’s report and, where he disagrees with the assessor, his reasons for that disagreement.

• (5) When making her determination the Secretary of State may disregard any written representations, evidence or other document received after the close of the inquiry.

• (6) If, after the close of the inquiry, the Secretary of State—

• (a) differs from the inspector on any matter of fact mentioned in, or appearing to her to be material to, a conclusion reached by the inspector; or

• (b) takes into consideration any new evidence or new matter of fact,

and is for that reason disposed to disagree with a recommendation made by the inspector, she shall not come to a decision which is at variance with that recommendation without first notifying the appellant and the relevant authority and any other person who appeared at the inquiry of her disagreement and the reasons for it, and affording them an opportunity of making written representations to her or of asking for the re-opening of the inquiry.

• (7) Those persons making written representations or requesting that the inquiry be re-opened under paragraph (6) shall ensure that such representations or requests are received by the Secretary of State within three weeks of the date of the Secretary of State’s notification under that paragraph.

• (8) The Secretary of State may, if she thinks fit, cause an inquiry to be re-opened, and she shall do so if asked by the appellant or the relevant authority in the circumstances mentioned in paragraph (6) and within the period mentioned in paragraph (7); and where an inquiry is re-opened (whether by the same or a different inspector)—

• (a) the Secretary of State shall send to the persons who appeared at the inquiry a written statement of the matters with respect to which further evidence is invited; and

• (b) paragraphs (3) to (8) of regulation 45 shall apply as if the references to an inquiry were references to a re-opened inquiry.

Procedure after inquiry—transferred appeals

53

• (1) This regulation applies for the purposes of an inquiry held for the purposes of a transferred appeal.

• (2) Where an assessor has been appointed he shall, after the close of the inquiry, make a report in writing to the inspector in respect of the matters on which he was appointed to advise, and the inspector shall state in the notification of his decision pursuant to regulation 55 that such a report was made.

• (3) When making his decision the inspector may disregard any written representations or evidence or other document received after the close of the inquiry.

• (4) If, after the close of the inquiry, an inspector proposes to take into consideration any new evidence or any new matter of fact which was not raised at the inquiry, and which he considers to be material to his decision, he shall not come to a decision without first—

• (a) notifying the persons entitled to appear at the inquiry who appeared at it of the matter in question; and

• (b) affording them an opportunity of making written representations to him or of asking for the inquiry to be re-opened;

and they shall ensure that such written representations are received by the Secretary of State within three weeks of the date of the notification.

• (5) An inspector may, if he thinks fit, cause an inquiry to be re-opened, and he shall do so if asked by the appellant or the relevant authority in the circumstances and within the period mentioned in paragraph (4); and where an inquiry is re-opened—

• (a) the inspector shall send to the persons entitled to appear at the inquiry who appeared at it a written statement of the matters with respect to which further evidence is invited; and

• (b) paragraphs (3) to (8) of regulation 45 shall apply as if the references to an inquiry were references to a re-opened inquiry.

Notification of decision—appeals determined by the Secretary of State

54

• (1) This regulation applies where an inquiry has been held for the purposes of any appeal to be determined by the Secretary of State.

• (2) The Secretary of State shall, as soon as practicable, notify her decision on an appeal, and her reasons for it, in writing to—

• (a) the appellant and the relevant authority; and

• (b) any other person who—

• (i) appeared at the inquiry, or

• (ii) is an interested person.

• (3) Where a copy of the inspector’s report is not sent with the notification of the decision, the notification shall be accompanied by a statement of the inspector’s conclusions and of any recommendations made by him, and if a person entitled to be notified of the decision has not received a copy of that report, he shall be supplied with a copy of it on written application to the Secretary of State.

• (4) In this regulation, “report” includes any assessor’s report appended to the inspector’s report but not any other documents so appended; but any person who has received a copy of the report may apply to the Secretary of State, in writing, within six weeks of the date of the Secretary of State’s decision, for an opportunity of inspecting such documents, and the Secretary of State shall afford him such an opportunity.

• (5) Any person applying to the Secretary of State under paragraph (3) or (4) shall ensure that his application is received by the Secretary of State within four weeks of the Secretary of State’s decision.

• (6) The Secretary of State shall ensure that, as soon as practicable after any notification has been given under paragraph (2), a copy of the notification is made available for inspection on a relevant website for a period of three months.

• (7) An inspector may, in place of the Secretary of State, take such steps as the Secretary of State is required or enabled to take under or by virtue of this regulation.

Notification of decision—transferred appeals

55

• (1) This regulation applies where an inquiry has been held for the purposes of a transferred appeal.

• (2) The inspector shall, as soon as practicable, notify his decision on an appeal, and his reasons for it, in writing to—

• (a) the appellant and the relevant authority; and

• (b) any other person who—

• (i) appeared at the inquiry, or

• (ii) is an interested person.

• (3) Any person entitled to be notified of the inspector’s decision under paragraph (2) may apply to the Secretary of State in writing for an opportunity to inspect any documents listed in the notification and any report made by an assessor, and the Secretary of State shall afford him that opportunity.

• (4) Any person making an application pursuant to paragraph (3) shall ensure that it is received by the Secretary of State within six weeks of the date of the decision.

• (5) The Secretary of State shall ensure that, as soon as practicable after any notification has been given under paragraph (2), a copy of the notification is made available for inspection on a relevant website for a period of three months.

CHAPTER V — Appeal against a decision of a relevant authority not to act in accordance with an application for a direction under section 25(1)(a)

Notice of appeal etc.

56

• (1) An appeal to the Secretary of State under section 30 against a decision of the relevant authority not to act in any respect in accordance with an application for a direction under section 25(1)(a) shall be made by notice given to the Secretary of State, on a form obtained from her, within six weeks of the date on which the authority issued the decision.

• (2) If the appellant wishes to withdraw the appeal before it is determined, he shall do so by giving notice to the Secretary of State in writing before the appeal is determined, and the Secretary of State shall, as soon as practicable, send a copy of that notice to the relevant authority.

• (3) The Secretary of State shall, on the day on which she receives notice of an appeal (or on the first working day thereafter where she receives it on a day which is not a working day) send a copy of the notice to the relevant authority by electronic communication or facsimile transmission, except that where it is not reasonably practicable for the Secretary of State to comply with this requirement within the specified time she shall do so as soon as reasonably practicable thereafter.

• (4) Where a relevant authority receives a notice of appeal pursuant to paragraph (3) they shall submit their statement of case by completing the relevant section of the notice and shall then send the notice, as amended, to the Secretary of State by electronic communication or facsimile transmission before the end of the second working day after the day on which they received it.

Arrangement and notification of hearing

57

The Secretary of State shall, before the end of the next working day after the day on which she has received an amended notice of appeal from a relevant authority pursuant to regulation 56(4) or, where it is not reasonably practicable to do so, as soon as reasonably practicable thereafter—

• (a) make appropriate arrangements for a hearing to be held;

• (b) notify the appellant and the authority, by telephone, electronic communication, facsimile transmission or first class post, of the date, time and place of the hearing; and

• (c) ensure that the information referred to in sub-paragraph (b) and a copy of the amended notice of appeal are available for inspection on a relevant website until the appeal is determined.

Consecutive and concurrent hearings

58

The Secretary of State may arrange for two or more appeals to be heard consecutively or concurrently where they relate to the same area of land or to areas of land which she considers to be in such proximity as to make it expedient for the hearings to be held consecutively or concurrently.

Appearances at hearing

59

• (1) The persons entitled to appear at the hearing are—

• (a) the appellant; and

• (b) the relevant authority;

but the inspector may permit any other person to appear in person or be represented by any other person.

• (2) Any person entitled or permitted to appear may appear in person or be represented by any other person.

Procedure at hearing

60

• (1) The inspector shall determine the procedure at a hearing.

• (2) A hearing shall take the form of a discussion led by an inspector, and cross-examination shall not be permitted unless the inspector considers that cross-examination is required to ensure a thorough examination of the main issues.

• (3) At the start of the hearing the inspector, after announcing his name and the fact of his appointment and requiring the relevant authority to sign the amended notice of appeal, shall identify what are, in his opinion, the main issues to be considered at the hearing and any matters on which he requires further explanation from any person appearing at the hearing; but this shall not preclude the addition in the course of the hearing of other issues for consideration or any person appearing at the hearing from referring to issues which they consider relevant to the consideration of the appeal but which were not issues so identified by the inspector.

• (4) The appellant and the relevant authority shall be entitled to give, or to call another person to give, oral evidence, and any other person may give, or call another person to give, oral evidence if so permitted by an inspector at his discretion, but notwithstanding any such entitlement or permission, the inspector may, at any stage in the proceedings refuse to permit the giving of evidence or presentation of any other matter which he considers to be irrelevant or repetitious.

• (5) Where the inspector refuses to permit the giving of oral evidence, the person wishing to give, or call any other person to give, evidence may submit to him any evidence or other matter in writing before the close of the hearing.

• (6) The inspector may require any person appearing or present at the hearing who, in his opinion, is behaving in a disruptive manner to leave the hearing; and the inspector may then refuse to permit that person to return or permit him to return only on such conditions as he may specify, but any such person may submit to the inspector any evidence or other matter in writing before the close of the hearing.

• (7) The inspector may—

• (a) proceed with a hearing in the absence of any person entitled to appear at it;

• (b) take into account any written representations or evidence or any other document received by him from any person before a hearing opens or during the hearing provided he discloses it at the hearing; and

• (c) at any time adjourn a hearing, and, if the date, time and place of the adjourned hearing are announced at the hearing before the adjournment, no further notice shall be required.

Notification of decision—appeals determined by the Secretary of State

61

• (1) Where a hearing has been held for the purposes of an appeal determined by the Secretary of State she shall, within forty-eight hours of the close of the hearing, notify her decision on the appeal to the appellant, the relevant authority and any ... other person who appeared at the hearing by sending to them a copy of the amended notice of appeal with her decision endorsed on it.

• (2) The Secretary of State shall ensure that, as soon as practicable after any notification has been given under paragraph (1), a copy of the amended notice of appeal with her decision endorsed on it is made available for inspection on a relevant website for a period of three months.

Notification of decision—transferred appeals

62

• (1) Where a hearing has been held for the purposes of a transferred appeal the inspector shall—

• (a) unless it is not reasonably practicable to do so, announce his decision on the appeal at the close of the hearing; and

• (b) within forty-eight hours of the close of the hearing, notify his decision on the appeal to the appellant, the relevant authority and any other person who appeared at the hearing, by sending to them a copy of the amended notice of appeal with his decision endorsed on it.

• (2) The Secretary of State shall ensure that, as soon as practicable after any notification has been given under paragraph (1), a copy of the amended notice of appeal with the inspector’s decision endorsed on it is made available for inspection on a relevant website for a period of three months.

Extension of time

63

The Secretary of State may, at any time and in any particular case, extend the time within which any of the requirements in regulation 56 must be complied with.

Changes of procedure

64

• (1) The Secretary of State may, at any time before the close of a hearing held under this Chapter, notify the appellant and the relevant authority that the appeal is no longer to be determined in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter but instead by way of written representations, or by way of a hearing or inquiry, in accordance with the provisions of Chapters I to IV of this Part as if the appeal were an appeal against a decision of a relevant authority not to grant a direction under section 24 or 25(1)(b).

• (2) Where the appeal procedure is changed by the Secretary of State under this regulation the Secretary of State shall—

• (a) notify the appellant, the relevant authority and any interested person of such change, and

• (b) ensure that a copy of such notice is available for inspection on a relevant website until the appeal is determined; and

the Secretary of State may give any consequential directions as to the procedure to be applied in relation to the appeal as she may consider necessary.

CHAPTER VI — General

Notification of appointment of assessor

65

Where the Secretary of State has appointed an assessor in respect of a hearing or inquiry, the inspector shall, at the commencement of the hearing or inquiry, announce the name of the assessor and the fact of his appointment.

Further time and additional copies

66

• (1) The Secretary of State may, at any time and in any particular case, give directions setting later time limits than those prescribed by Part III of these Regulations for the taking of any step or the doing of any thing which is required or enabled to be taken or done by virtue of these Regulations; and references in these Regulations to a period within which any step or thing is required or enabled to be taken or done shall be construed accordingly.

• (2) The Secretary of State or an inspector, may, at any time before the notification of her or his decision in the case of an appeal to be determined by way of written representations or (in the case of a hearing or inquiry) before the close of a hearing or inquiry, request from any person making written representations or appearing at the hearing or inquiry (as the case may be)—

• (a) further written representations or evidence, or (in the case of a hearing or inquiry) oral evidence with regard to any matter on which she or he requires further information; and

• (b) copies of (as appropriate)—

• (i) a statement of case or comments sent in accordance with regulation 25 or 27;

• (ii) a proof of evidence sent in accordance with regulation 47; or

• (iii) any other document or information sent to the Secretary of State or inspector before or during a hearing or inquiry;

and may specify a reasonable time within which such representations or copies must be received by her or him, and any person so requested shall ensure that the representations or copies are received within the period specified.

Inspection and copying of documents

67

The relevant authority shall afford any person who so requests, an opportunity, at such time and place as the relevant authority may reasonably determine, to inspect and, where practicable, take copies of—

• (a) the notice of appeal submitted by the appellant pursuant to regulation 20(1) or 56(1);

• (b) the questionnaire completed by the authority pursuant to regulation 22(a) together with any documents referred to in it;

• (c) any representations made to the authority in respect of matters mentioned in regulation 22(b)(i) or (ii);

• (d) the notice given by the Secretary of State pursuant to regulation 23;

• (e) all documents submitted by the authority pursuant to regulation 24, 25(a), 27(b) and 56(4);

• (f) the statement of case submitted by the appellant pursuant to regulation 25 (b), the comments submitted by the appellant pursuant to regulation 27(a) and the further information provided by the appellant, the authority or an interested person pursuant to regulation 28;

• (g) any representations made to the Secretary of State in respect of the appeal under regulation 25(c);

• (h) any proof of evidence (together with any written summary) sent by or to the authority pursuant to regulation 47; or

• (i) any statement of common ground prepared by the appellant and the authority pursuant to regulation 48.

Changes of procedure

68

• (1) If, at any time before the Secretary of State or the inspector, in either case under regulation 31, notifies her or (as the case may be) his decision on an appeal, the appellant, the relevant authority or the Secretary of State wishes the appeal to be determined no longer by way of written representations but instead by way of a hearing or inquiry, the Secretary of State shall arrange for the appeal to proceed by way of a hearing or inquiry.

• (2) Paragraphs (3) and (4) apply at any time before the Secretary of State, under regulation 40 or 54, or an inspector, under regulation 41 or 55, notifies her or (as the case may be) his decision on an appeal.

• (3) If the appellant or the relevant authority wishes an appeal to be determined no longer by way of a hearing or inquiry but instead by way of written representations, the Secretary of State shall consult the other party, and, if both that party and the Secretary of State agree to such a change in procedure, the Secretary of State shall arrange for the appeal to be determined by way of written representations.

• (4) If the appellant, the relevant authority or the Secretary of State wishes an appeal to be determined—

• (i) no longer by way of a hearing but instead by way of an inquiry, or

• (ii) no longer by way of an inquiry but instead by way of a hearing,

the Secretary of State shall, after consulting the other party or, where the Secretary of State wishes the appeal procedure to be changed, both the parties, decide whether the hearing or inquiry (as the case may be) should be no longer proceed and an inquiry or hearing (as appropriate) be held instead.

• (5) Where the appeal procedure is changed by the Secretary of State under this regulation—

• (a) the Secretary of State shall—

• (i) notify the appellant, the relevant authority and any interested person in respect of the appeal of such change, and

• (ii) ensure that a copy of such notice is available for inspection on a relevant website until the appeal is determined; and

• (b) in relation to the conduct of the appeal thereafter—

• (i) any step taken or thing done under these Regulations in relation to the former appeal procedure which could have been taken done under any corresponding provision of these Regulations relating to the new appeal procedure shall have effect as if taken or done under that corresponding provision, and

• (ii) the Secretary of State may give any consequential directions as to the procedure to be applied in relation to the appeal as she may consider necessary.

Recovery of jurisdiction

69

Where the appointment of an appointed person is revoked under paragraph 2(c) of Schedule 3 to the Act and no new appointment is made at the time of such revocation, the appeal shall proceed as an appeal which falls to be determined by the Secretary of State instead of as a transferred appeal, and any step taken or thing done under these Regulations in relation to the transferred appeal which could have been taken or done in relation to an appeal which falls to be determined by the Secretary of State shall have effect as if it had been taken or done in relation to such an appeal.

Procedure following quashing of a decision

70

• (1) Where the decision of the Secretary of State or an inspector in respect of an appeal is quashed in proceedings before any court, the Secretary of State—

• (a) shall send to the appellant, the relevant authority and any interested person a written statement of the matters with respect to which further representations are invited for the purposes of her further consideration of the appeal;

• (b) shall afford to those persons the opportunity of making written representations to her in respect of those matters or of asking for the re-opening of the hearing or the inquiry, and

• (c) may, as she thinks fit, cause the hearing or inquiry to be re-opened and, if she re-opens the hearing or inquiry, paragraphs (3) to (8) of regulation 32 and paragraphs (3) to (8) of regulation 45 shall apply as if the references to a hearing or inquiry were references to a re-opened hearing or inquiry respectively.

• (2) Those persons making representations or asking for the inquiry to be re-opened under paragraph (1)(b) shall ensure that such representations or requests are received by the Secretary of State within three weeks of the date of the written statement sent under paragraph (1)(a).

SCHEDULE — PERSONS TO BE SENT COPIES OF NOTICESRELATING TO PROPOSED DIRECTIONS

The access authority for the area of land to which the direction relates

• British Association for Shooting and Conservation

• British Mountaineering Council

• Countryside Council for Wales (in respect of any direction relating to land adjoining land in Wales)

• Country Land and Business Association

• National Farmers' Union

• Open Spaces Society

• Ramblers' Association

Signed

Alun Michael — Minister of State, — Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs — 2003-10-22

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (“the Act”) creates a public right of access to certain types of land, subject to certain conditions. The Act also provides for the exclusion or restriction of this right in certain circumstances.

These Regulations, which extend to England only, contain provisions relating to the exclusion or restriction of such right of access to land. In particular—

Part II of these Regulations (regulations 4 to 18) contains provisions—

• (1) relating to the giving of notice by an entitled person under section 22(1) of the Act so as to exclude or restrict the right of access to any land for up to 28 days in any calendar year (regulation 4);

• (2) relating to the steps to be taken by the owner of land under section 23(1) or (2) of the Act so as to restrict the right of access to any land with dogs (regulation 5);

• (3) relating to the procedure to be followed on an application to a relevant authority for a direction under section 24 or 25 of the Act so as to exclude or restrict access to any land (regulation 6);

• (4) relating to the giving of notice by the applicant (for the purposes of a direction under section 24 of the Act), by a specified person (for the purposes of a direction under section 25 or 26 of the Act) or by the Secretary of State (for the purposes of a direction under section 28 of the Act), of the period during which the right of access to the land is to be excluded or restricted (regulation 7):

• (5) prohibiting a person who is interested in any land as the holder of rights of common from making an application for a direction under section 24 or 25 of the Act excluding access to that land and specifying the cases in which such a person may make an application under section 24 or 25 of the Act restricting access to that land (regulation 8);

• (6) relating to the consultation required by relevant authorities and by the Secretary of State where they propose to give a direction under section 24, 25, 26 or 28 of the Act excluding or restricting access to any land indefinitely or for a period which exceeds (or may exceed) six months (regulation 9) ;

• (7) relating to the time by which a relevant authority is required to determine an application for a direction under section 24 or 25 (regulation 10);

• (8) relating to the notification by relevant authorities of decisions made by them with regard to directions under section 24, 25 or 26 of the Act; and by the Secretary of State of decisions made by her with regard to directions under section 28 of the Act (regulations 11 and 12);

• (9) requiring relevant authorities, before revoking or varying a direction given under section 24, 25 or 26 of the Act, to provide certain specified information to certain persons and bodies (regulation 13);

• (10) relating to the consultation required by relevant authorities and by the Secretary of State on reviews of directions given by them under the Act excluding or restricting the right of access to any land indefinitely, for part of every year or for part of each of six or more consecutive years or for a specified period of more than five years (regulations 15 and 16);

• (11) relating to steps to be taken by the Countryside Agency (“the Agency”) for informing the public about the exclusion or restriction of the right of access to any land in accordance with the provisions of the Act and these Regulations (regulation 17).

Part III of these Regulations relates to appeals under the Act against a decision of a relevant authority not to grant an application for a direction under section 24 or 25 or not to act in accordance with any representations made by an appellant before deciding whether to revoke or vary certain directions given under section 24 or 25. It is divided into six chapters.

Chapter I (regulations 19 to 28) sets out the initial procedures which have effect irrespective of whether such an appeal is to be determined on the basis of written representations or by way of a hearing or local inquiry. These procedures require the appeal to be made to the Secretary of State, on a form obtained from her, within six weeks of the date of the relevant authority issuing their decision and require the Secretary of State to notify the appellant and the relevant authority of the method by which the appeal is to be determined and of various other procedural matters. The relevant authority and the appellant are each required to submit a statement containing full particulars of their case to the Secretary of State and are entitled to submit comments to the Secretary of State on each other’s statement and on any representations made to the Secretary of State by any other person in respect of the appeal. Time limits are prescribed for the submission of all such documents.

Chapter II (regulations 29 to 31) sets out procedures to be followed where such an appeal is to be determined on the basis of written representations, and includes a requirement relating to the notification by the Secretary of State or an inspector of their decision on the appeal and the reasons for it.

Chapter III (regulations 32 to 41) sets out procedures to be followed where such an appeal is to be determined by way of a hearing and includes provisions relating to the giving of notice in respect of a hearing, the procedures to be followed during and after the hearing and the notification by the Secretary of State or an inspector of their decision on the appeal and the reasons for it.

Chapter IV (regulations 42 to 55) sets out the procedures to be followed where such an appeal is to be determined by way of a local inquiry and includes provisions relating to pre-inquiry meetings, the giving of notice in respect of an inquiry, proofs of evidence, statements of common ground, the procedure to be followed during and after the inquiry and the notification by the Secretary of State or an inspector of their decision on the appeal and the reasons for it.

Chapter V (regulations 56 to 64) contains provisions relating to an appeal against a decision of a relevant authority not to grant an application for a direction under section 25(1)(a) for the purpose of fire prevention. It provides for such an appeal to be determined by way of a hearing, and includes provisions relating to the giving of notice in respect of the hearing, the procedures to be followed during and after the hearing and the notification by the Secretary of State or an inspector of their decision on the appeal and the reasons for it. The time limits for the submission of documents relating to such an appeal are shorter than in the case of an appeal to be determined by way of a hearing in accordance with Chapter III.

Chapter VI (regulations 65 to 70) contains general provisions, including power for the Secretary of State to set later time limits than those prescribed by the Regulations for the taking of any step required by the Regulations and a requirement for the relevant authority to afford persons an opportunity to inspect and take copies of various documents relating to appeals.

Provision is also made for the method of appeal to be changed by the Secretary of State in certain circumstances during the course of an appeal. Where a decision of the Secretary of State or an inspector on an appeal is quashed by a court, provision is made for any person who appeared at the hearing or local inquiry, or who made representations in respect of the appeal, to make further written representations for the purpose of further consideration of the appeal by the Secretary of State or to ask for the re-opening of the hearing or local inquiry.

The use of electronic communications is permitted for the purposes of these Regulations. (regulation 3).

Footnotes

Editorial notes