<p>HERTFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL Agenda item No. DEVELOPMENT CONTROL COMMITTEE TUESDAY 10 JUNE 2008 AT 10.00AM 1 NORTH HERTFORDSHIRE DISTRICT APPLICATION FOR THE REGISTRATION OF LAND AT YEOMANRY DRIVE, CLOTHALL COMMON, BALDOCK, AS A TOWN OR VILLAGE GREEN</p><p>Report of the Director of Environment</p><p>Author: Rosalinde Shaw – Definitive Map Team Leader (RoW Unit) Tel: 01992 555285</p><p>Local Member: Tony Hunter</p><p>1. Purpose of the Report</p><p>1.1 To inform the Committee of an application to register land at Yeomanry Drive, Clothall Common, Baldock, as a town or village green.</p><p>1.2 To inform Members of the findings and recommendations of an independent inspector following a non-statutory local inquiry, subsequent written representations and further non-statutory local inquiry.</p><p>1.3 To ask Members to decide whether to accept or reject the registration</p><p>2. Summary</p><p>2.1 An application dated 26th November 2003 to register land at Yeomanry Drive, Clothall Common, Baldock, as a town or village green, was received by Hertfordshire County Council from Mr Christopher Bryan of 62 Westell Close, Clothall Common, Baldock. (See map of application area attached at Appendix A).</p><p>2.2 The application has been processed by the Environment Department on behalf of the County Council as Registration Authority, in accordance with the Commons Registration Act 1965, as amended by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000.</p><p>2.3 The land in respect of which the application is made is owned by North Hertfordshire District Council. An objection was lodged to the application by North Hertfordshire District Council on 17 February 2005.</p><p>2.4 Following the necessary gathering and exchange of information, it was decided that the evidence should be considered at a non-statutory public inquiry. The inquiry was held at St Mary’s Church Hall on 8, 9 and 10 November 2006 and 11 and 12 December 2006. The independent inspector appointed by the County Council was Mr Philip Petchey, a barrister experienced in this area of law.</p><p>2.5 Mr Petchey’s original report, dated 22nd February 2007, states that the application should be rejected. His report’s conclusion states “I recommend that the site be not registered as a town or village green”. A full copy of the report is attached at Appendix B. 1 2.6 After presentation of the original report, further representations were made on behalf of the Applicant by Save Our Green Spaces (SOGS), together with the submission of additional evidential material, which questioned certain aspects of Mr Petchey’s report.</p><p>2.7 It was agreed between SOGS and North Herts District Council that further written representations would be made and submitted to Mr Petchey.</p><p>2.8 The material submitted by SOGS and North Hertfordshire District Council was sent to Mr Petchey for consideration. As a result of the further representations Mr. Petchey produced a Supplementary Note dated 28 June 2007 (Appendix C) and a Supplementary Report dated 29 August 2007 (Appendix D). In conclusion Mr Petchey suggests that in light of the further written representations a second non-statutory public inquiry is held to consider the issues raised.</p><p>2.9 It was agreed at the DC meeting of 11th September 2007 that the decision on the application should be deferred until the conclusion of the re-opened non- statutory public inquiry. </p><p>2.10 The inquiry was re-opened and held at St Mary’s Church Hall on 14, 15 and 16 January 2008 by Mr Philip Petchey, the same barrister who had conducted the previous inquiry.</p><p>2.11 Mr. Petchey’s Supplementary Report dated 13th May 2008 following this re- opened inquiry summarises at paragraph 71 “ I am satisfied from all the evidence that the entirety of the application site was not fenced off during the continuation of the dig. However I consider that most of it clearly was. This leaves two comparatively small areas which could have been used for lawful sports and pastimes. However there is no substantial evidence that either of these two areas was so used. Accordingly I do not alter the recommendation contained in my Report dated 22 February 2007. I consider that neither the application site nor any part of it should be registered as a town or village green”. A full copy of the report is attached at Appendix E.</p><p>3 Conclusions</p><p>3.1 Mr. Petchey’s report concludes that the Director of Environment should reject the application to register the land at Yeomanry Drive, Clothall Common, Baldock, as a town or village green, for the reasons set out in the reports.</p><p>1. Background</p><p>1.1 The land which is the subject of this application consists of approximately 2 acres of open space located towards the north-west corner of the Clothall Common Estate near Baldock. The site is bounded by a public footpath to the south west and immediately beyond the footpath is Hartsfield Primary School. Yeomanry Drive runs along the eastern boundary of the site and the remainder of the site is bounded by housing (see map attached at Appendix A).</p><p>1.2 The Clothall Common Estate is a housing estate built in the 1980s with the first houses on the estate being completed and occupied by 1983. Prior to the estate being built, the application land was open farmland.</p><p>2 2. The Process</p><p>2.1 The process for defining and registering Village Greens is set out in the Commons Registration Act 1965, which was amended by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 and is now subject to the Commons Act 2006 which is coming into force in sections.</p><p>2.2 Applications to register town or village greens are made to Hertfordshire County Council who is the Registration Authority for Hertfordshire </p><p>2.3 As this application was made in 2003 it needs to be determined according to the Commons Registration Act 1965, as amended by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. The initial procedure for dealing with this application is laid down in the Commons Registration (New Land) Regulations 1969.</p><p>2.4 A town or village green is defined in section 22 of the Commons Registration Act 1965, as amended by section 98 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 as;</p><p>“ land on which for not less than twenty years a significant number of the inhabitants of any locality, or of any neighbourhood within a locality, have indulged in lawful sports and pastimes as of right, and either (a) continue to do so, or (b) have ceased to do so for not more than such period as may be prescribed, or determined in accordance with the prescribed provisions”.</p><p>2.5 The determination of the application must be based on whether there is evidence supporting the application that shows a town or village green has come into existence. If the County Council decides that the land in question meets the requirement of the above definition, it must register the land as village green. However there is no statutory procedure for making decisions on applications.</p><p>2.6 To determine applications the Registration Authority may appoint an independent inspector to hold a non-statutory inquiry to hear the evidence for and against the application, and to make a report with recommendations based on that evidence and its interpretation in the light of case law.</p><p>2.7 There is no statutory right of appeal to the First Secretary of State against the County Council’s decision and the only challenge to a decision made by this Committee would be through the process of judicial review of the procedure and processes that have been applied to the determination.</p><p>3. Application</p><p>3.1 The application dated 26 November 2003, was made by Mr Christopher Bryan to Hertfordshire County Council as the Registration Authority.</p><p>3.2 The application is supported by 144 evidence questionnaires and 23 evidence statements from local people describing the recreational activities they have enjoyed over the land and the periods of time those activities have taken place. Copies of these questionnaires and statements are available for members of the committee and interested members of the public to view at County Hall by prior appointment. Appointments should be made with Rosalinde Shaw on the telephone number at the head of this report. 3 3.3 The procedures were followed by the applicant for making the application, and by the County Council for the notification of interested parties and advertising the application.</p><p>3.4 An objection dated 17 February 2005 was received from North Hertfordshire District Council citing a number of grounds including that the land had not been used or continued to be used “as of right” for 20 years and also that the applicant could not prove that users of the land do represent a significant proportion of the population.</p><p>3.5 Once all the information requested from both parties had been received by the County Council, officers of the County Council, as Registration Authority, concluded that a non-statutory public inquiry should be held.</p><p>3.6 Mr Philip Petchey was appointed by the County Council as an independent inspector and an inquiry was held on 8, 9 and 10 November 2006 and 11 and 12 December 2006 at St Mary’s Church Hall in Baldock.</p><p>3.7 Following publication of Mr Petchey’s report, further representations and evidence was submitted by the applicant (SOGS) and in response, by the objector (North Hertfordshire District Council). Mr Petchey produced a Supplementary Note dated 28 June 2007(Appendix C) and a Supplementary Report dated 29 August 2007 (Appendix D).</p><p>3.8 In Sept 2007, it was agreed by this Committee that the decision on registration should be deferred until the conclusion of the re-opened non-statutory public Inquiry </p><p>3.9 The inquiry was re-opened and held at St Mary’s Church Hall on 14, 15 and 16 January 2008.</p><p>4. Conclusion</p><p>4.1 Mr Petchey’s original report is attached at Appendix B, and his final report is attached at Appendix E. He concludes in the final report that the application for registration of the land as a village green should be rejected for the reasons set out in the report and summarised at paragraph 71 of his final report – see paragraph 2.11 above. </p><p>5. Financial Implications</p><p>5.1 The finance that has been required to process this application has been sourced from existing County Council budgets.</p><p>5.2 Applications should be determined on the basis of relevant material considerations, and not on the basis of their financial implications for the County Council. However, it is a requirement of the County Council to advise all Committees of the financial implications that may arise from a decision of the Committee. </p><p>5.3 Should the applicant seek judicial review of the procedures and processes that have been used by the Registration Authority in determining this application 4 such review procedures could incur costs for the Registration Authority that may not be covered by existing budgets.</p><p>Background information used by the author in compiling this report</p><p>Commons Registration Act 1965 Commons Registration (New Land) Regulations 1969 Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 Reports of Mr Philip Petchey</p><p>If you require any further information on the items referred to in this report, please telephone Rosalinde Shaw on 01992 555285</p><p>5 APPENDIX A</p><p>6 7</p>