We remain firmly of the view that extending statutory access to England’s coastline is unnecessary and costly. Surveys demonstrate that approximately 70% of the coast is already accessible on de jure or de facto basis.
Our experience also shows that very few users wish to access the entire coastline; most public access is to limited coastal lengths around 'honeypot' locations. We have long believed that the better use of limited public funding would be to focus on managing access in these areas rather than spreading resources thinly over a larger area.
Our response notes that:
- ‘Walking the course’ is valuable to identifying problems, addressing concerns and engaging with land managers and owners, forming an important part of the process for developing the coastal path.
- The NFU encourages early engagement with farmers, land owners and their representatives supported with effective consultation through the development of the coastal access route. There should always be constructive two-way discussion that takes in to account their views, experience and local knowledge. The NFU is in a key position to facilitate this.
- Spreading room on the landward side to the coastal path should be agreed with the landowner and manager to fit in with their business needs. It should not be ‘automatically’ designated up to the nearest boundary.
- Site visits by the Planning Inspectorate play an important role to resolve objections. However, in Weymouth Bay the approach was not consistent between visits. This needs addressing going forward.