King Charles III England Coast Path: manage your land in the coastal margin
As an owner or manager of land in the coastal margin, find out about your responsibilities and how to manage public access.
Applies to England
The King Charles III England Coast Path (ECP) is a new national trail being created by Natural England. For the first time people will have a walking path that serves the whole English coast.
As part of this work a coastal margin is being identified which includes all land seaward of the trail. Much of the coastal margin is open access land under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (CROW Act).
Open stretches of the King Charles III England Coast Path are shown on the National Trails website.
The online maps show any local restrictions or exclusions that limit the public’s rights. Some of the areas do not have access rights because they are excepted land.
How your coastal land is affected
Natural England must:
- aim to strike a “fair balance” between your property interests and the public’s rights to enjoy open-air recreation on coastal land
Coastal access won’t:
- take the ownership of your land away from you - you can still manage your land as you see fit
- create new public rights through your private space around houses such as gardens
- interfere with any businesses you run on your coastal land unnecessarily
Manage erosion
If your land is affected by erosion or other coastal change, it will be possible to roll back the line of the trail. Natural England will have set out where roll back can occur in its proposals to the Secretary of State. This means the route can move quickly in response to natural changes such as erosion.
Manage signs
Your local access authority will install signs to mark the route as necessary, and any new gates required for access through your land. This work is paid for by Natural England, who also help with the authority’s maintenance costs once the route is open.
Find out who your highway authority is by searching for your local council on GOV.UK.
What people can do on your land
People can normally access your land in the coastal margin for open-air recreation provided they do not break or damage any wall, fence, hedge, stile or gate. Providing clear access points may help people use your land responsibly.
Examples of open-air recreation are:
- walking
- sightseeing
- bird-watching
- climbing
- running
- skiing (either cross-country or downhill)
- snowboarding
Visitors to your land may be able to carry out other activities, if any of these apply:
- they have a public right of way over the land, such as a bridleway or byway
- they have other relevant legal rights
- they have your permission
The right of access cannot be relied on to undertake such activities as political rallies, filming activities and kite-surfing but as the landowner you can allow extra activities on the land.
What people cannot do on your land
There is a national list of general restrictions that limit what people using their coastal access rights may do. Unless you give them permission or they have a separate right to do so, they cannot:
- ride a horse or cycle on the land
- drive a vehicle (except mobility scooters and powered wheelchairs)
- bring an animal, other than a dog
- use a vessel or sailboard on any non-tidal water
- camp
- play organised games - this includes competitive games that use a set pitch or defined area of play, organised starts and finishes and associated equipment (a family group or a small group of friends engaging in games such as rounders, cricket or playing with a frisbee are not playing organised games)
- hang-glide or paraglide
- use a metal detector
- light, cause or risk a fire
- hunt, shoot, or trap or snare animals or birds
- fish, unless they are doing this in tidal water from the coastal margin
- feed any livestock
- undertake commercial activities on the land such as:
- trading or selling
- charging other visitors for things done on your land
- commercial filming or photography
- making maps
- intentionally remove, damage, or destroy any plant, shrub, tree or root
- damage hedges, fences, walls, crops or anything else on the land
- leave gates open, unless propped or fastened open
- leave litter
- intentionally or recklessly disturb livestock, wildlife or habitats
- disturb, annoy or obstruct others
- post any notices
- commit any criminal offence
A person becomes a trespasser if they fail to comply with these rules or with local restrictions, and would be expected to leave the land if asked to do so by the landowner or their representative. They may not then use the open access rights to return to that land or any other land in the same ownership for 72 hours. Trespass is a common law matter but an owner has the option to seek a court injunction against a person who is persistently trespassing in this way. A breach of any resultant court injunction would be a matter for the police to deal with.
Land that does not have public access
Coastal access rights do not apply on ‘excepted land’ even if it appears as open access land on maps, such as the online maps.
The CROW Act excludes the right of access to land known as ‘excepted land’ even if it appears as open access land on maps, such as CROW Act maps.
Types of land that are fully excepted include:
- buildings or the curtilage of such land, for example courtyards
- parks or gardens
- quarries and other active mineral workings (except, under certain circumstances, the removal of sand or shingle from an area of foreshore or beach)
- railways or tramways
- temporary livestock pens
- racecourses or aerodromes
- land which is being developed and which will become excepted land in future
- land covered by structures like electricity substations, wind turbines, telephone masts works, other than, flood defences or sea defences
- land under Ministry of Defence byelaws, such as most military training areas
- schools including playing fields
- land which forms part of a public highway
Excepted land with provision for an access strip normally 4 metres wide includes:
- land ploughed for the growing of crops or trees in the past year
- golf courses
- regulated caravan or camping sites
- burial grounds
Many types of excepted land will be obvious to people on the ground. If you own land you consider land falls within one of the categories, you may wish to use signs to clarify the position. You may wish to seek independent legal advice. Natural England cannot comment on individual circumstances.
Any public rights of way across access land are a separate legal right managed by the local highway authority. Find out who your highway authority is by searching for your local council on GOV.UK.
Dogs
People may walk their dogs on access land and coastal margin.
Visitors using coastal access rights must always keep dogs:
- under effective control
- on a short lead in the vicinity of livestock
The access rights do not include professional dog walking.
Manage public access on your land
The route of the King Charles III England Coast Path is designed to be sensitive to land use. It can:
- pass along the seaward edge of fields
- pass along existing paths and tracks (where available)
- avoid unsuitable areas of your land, for example sites used for heavy industry
You can use informal measures such as signage to help manage public access and avoid conflict with your land management activities. Signs or verbal requests can be more effective than legal restrictions because:
- they can be put in place at short notice
- they do not require advanced notice or approval
- they can be used in all situations where they’re useful
- visitors are more likely to follow instructions suggesting what they can do rather than a legal restriction which tells them what they cannot do
- your reduced occupier’s liability does not apply when legal restrictions are in place
If informal measures do not work, you might be able to restrict public access. The public can comment on restrictions due to last more than 6 months.
You can mark the boundaries of open access land with the open access symbol. The King Charles III England Coast Path is signed with the National Trails ‘acorn’ symbol. See the Countryside Code for more information about these symbols. The Countryside Code sets out the responsibilities for visitors to the countryside and those who manage the land. You can print a summary and display it on your land.
It’s an offence to display signs or notices that contain false or misleading information.
Your access authority (the local authority, or where relevant the national park authority) oversees access rights under the CROW Act in your area and on the King Charles III England Coast Path.
They can advise you on managing access if you’re having problems. They have powers to:
- make byelaws
- appoint wardens
- erect and maintain notices
- deal with any obstruction of access
- improve ways for people to get to access land or the King Charles III England Coast Path
Local highway authorities have powers to make public right of way creation agreements with landowners or where necessary path orders.
Find out who your access or highway authority is by searching for your local council on GOV.UK.
Natural England cannot comment on individual circumstances.
Your liability to the public
Your level of occupier liability is reduced when new coastal access rights are created along the ECP or within the coastal margin. You’re not responsible for any damage or injury caused by any physical feature on the land, whether it’s a natural feature of the landscape or a man-made one.
The interpretation of the legislation on liability to the public is a matter for the courts. Anyone seeking legal advice on a particular case is advised to consult a lawyer. For more information see Liabilities on the coastal margin which has been developed by the Country Land and Business Association with input from Natural England and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).
Charges
You can’t charge visitors for access but you can charge for goods, services and facilities, such as deck chair hire, parking and entry to attractions.
Development on your land
You can develop your land subject to approval from your local planning authority.
Natural England can submit a report to the Secretary of State recommending a change to the ECP if it’s affected by your development.
If visitors are likely to disrupt your work or be put in danger by it, you can put up warning signs. If necessary Natural England can help you restrict or exclude access.
Open your land for public access
If you own land or hold a lease which has more than 90 years left to run, you can voluntarily create public access rights by dedicating the land under section 16 of the CROW Act.
This dedication is permanent (or, where appropriate, lasts for the duration of the long lease), so the rights will continue to apply when you no longer own the land.
You can use a dedication to allow public access to areas in the coastal margin that are usually excepted land.
You can also allow additional recreational activities to take place on your land by relaxing or removing one or more of the general restrictions, for example to allow people to ride horses. This can be done either through a permanent dedication, or by agreeing to a ‘direction’ that makes this change indefinitely or for a specified period of time.
Your access authority (the local authority, or where relevant the national park authority) has powers to enter into agreements with landowners to open up, improve or repair means of access.
Restrict public access
The route of the ECP is designed to be sensitive to land use. It can:
- pass along the seaward edge of fields
- pass along existing paths and tracks (where available)
- avoid unsuitable areas of your land, for example sites used for heavy industry
You can use either informal measures, such as signing, or legal restrictions, to manage public access and avoid conflict with your land management activities.
You can mark the boundaries of open access land with the access symbol. The ECP will be signed with the national trails ‘acorn symbol’. See the Countryside Code for more information on these symbols.
Any need for formal restrictions or exclusions of public access will be discussed with you when the route and coastal margin are being planned. If circumstances change later and you think visitors may disrupt your work or be endangered by it, you can speak to Natural England about how to manage your operations which may include formal restrictions or exclusions if necessary.
See Open access land and the coastal margin: how to restrict public access for more information.
Contact
Open Access Contact Centre
Email open.access@naturalengland.org.uk
Telephone 0300 060 2091
Updates to this page
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The page has been revised and updated. A section on dogs has been added.
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Page restructure
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First published.