Agenda item

PUBLIC FOOTPATH 41, CAMDEN PARK ROAD, CHISLEHURST

(Chislehurst Ward)

Minutes:

Report LDCS10154

 

At its meeting on 27th April 2005, the Rights of Way Sub-Committee resolved that an Order should be made under S.53 (3)(b) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to add a public footpath to the Definitive Map and Statement along the south side of Camden Park Road to link up with the existing FP 41 where it joined Camden Park Road.  The rationale at that time for the proposed Order was that Camden Park Estate Limited had blocked public vehicular access by means of electronically controlled gates across the carriageway but had left a manually operated side gate for pedestrian access.  The then Director of Legal and Democratic Services considered that to protect future pedestrian access, a footpath as described should be added to the Definitive Map and Statement. 

 

Members were advised at the last meeting of the Sub-Committee on 5th January 2010 (the first time the Sub-Committee had met since the meeting in April 2005) that although the Order had been made in October 2005, it had not progressed to formal confirmation because of various objections to it which had not been withdrawn.  As one of the objections challenged the validity of the Order itself, because of an error on the Order plan and description in the body of the Order of the length of the proposed footpath, the Order was defective and if it was to proceed further would have to be re-made.  However a six month time limit applied to the making of orders under the Act and the authority to re-make the Order had expired. 

 

Since the meeting in April 2005, the Council had not received any complaint or other indication that pedestrian access had been denied or challenged in any way as had been originally feared.  Subsequently the Council had recorded Camden Park Road on its non-statutory list of unadopted highways as a highway restricted to pedestrian rights over the distance between the gates.  In legal terms as a highway with that restriction there was no practical necessity or legal requirement to separately record the footpath on the Definitive Map and Statement. 

 

The Chairman highlighted that a statement within the Commentary of the report LDCS10154 was incorrect and put forward a proposal that the entry for Camden Park Road in the Council’s non-statutory list of unadopted highways should reflect the decision of the Rights of Way Sub-Committee on 27 April 2005 as follows:

 

“a highway restricted to footway rights running along the south side of Camden Park Road between the kerb line and street boundary and crossing Camden Park Road to join Footpath 41 on the other side, as shown along the route A to B in drawing EHP/9808/01 as circulated to the Rights of Way Sub-Committee for its meeting on 27 April 2005.”

 

The Sub-Committee supported this and agreed that, in future, rights of way issues relating to Camden Park Road should have reference to Map EHP/9808/01. 

 

Having considered the report of the Director of Legal, Democratic and Customer Services and the advice of the officers, the Sub-Committee was satisfied that no new Order needed to be authorised.

 

RESOLVED that

 

(1)  no new Order be authorised; and

 

(2)  the proposal to amend the entry for Camden Park Road in the Council’s non-statutory list of unadopted highways as set out above be agreed.

Supporting documents: