Page contents
- Executive summary
- Objectives
- Findings and actions
- Delivering the Rights of Way Improvement Plan
- Rights of Way Improvement Plan and evidence reports
Every council which is responsible for public rights of way must produce a Rights of Way Improvement Plan. It sets out the council’s goals and priorities for public rights of way.
A Rights of Way Improvement Plan has to assess how well public rights of way meet the needs of the public. This includes those who already use public rights of way and those who would like to.
Executive summary
We asked the public, stakeholders and our partners for their views before we produced the Rights of Way Improvement Plan. This highlighted how much people value public rights of way, how important they are for health, mental wellbeing and for enjoying nature and that many use them regularly, often on a daily basis.
Feedback has helped us to understand what needs to be improved. We will report on what we have achieved to deliver the Rights of Way Improvement Plan our Annual Report, which will be published on this web page.
Objectives
The areas we need to improve are set out in our 11 objectives. Under these objectives are 28 actions which provide more detail on how we will deliver these improvements.
Objective 1: To improve our understanding of the needs of all our users, including those presently under-represented, to make sure that the rights of way network continues to evolve to meet their current and future needs.
Objective 2: That the network is as accessible as possible to as many people as possible, regardless of their physical mobility, disability, ethnicity, age, income or other factors, through working with partners, improving the quality of the network and providing information.
Objective 3: To maintain the network in the best possible condition, prioritising safety and targeting maintenance to where there is the greatest need.
Objective 4: To improve the condition of the public rights of way network through supporting others with a responsibility towards public rights of way, including landowners.
Objective 5: To uphold the council’s legal duties to provide an up-to-date definitive map and statement which is accessible to the public, and to execute other work streams in relation to legal work to record, protect and vary public rights of way, in order to underpin the objectives and actions in this Rights of Way Improvement Plan.
Objective 6: To ensure that development does not impact negatively on public rights of way or their users; that they are protected and any impacts on them are appropriately mitigated. This should be both within the development and in the wider catchment. Rights of Way requirements associated with Strategic sites should be included in Local Plans.
Objective 7: To improve the safety of our users in respect to the impacts of traffic, through seeking improved connections and crossings where there is the greatest need, working with partners on information and initiatives to improve safety and to support active travel, liveable neighbourhoods and recreation.
Objective 8: To ensure that public rights of way contribute to conserving and protecting the outstanding biodiversity, landscape and heritage of ÌÇÐÄvlog¹ÙÍø, whilst also providing opportunities to appreciate and understand them.
Objective 9: To protect the network from and adapt to the impacts of climate change through improving our maintenance techniques, applying best practice, seeking to innovate, using new materials and improving our understanding of changing weather patterns and other impacts on the public rights of way network.
Objective 10: To raise awareness of the public rights of way network and to support existing and new users with opportunities to find out about public rights of way, to explore them, to make the network a more welcoming place and to help people to find their way around.
Objective 11: To encourage responsible use of the countryside, to increase understanding and consideration between users and to lessen impacts on landowners, their businesses and livestock.
Findings and actions
Below are the areas which the Rights of Way Improvement plan aims to address. These are based on the feedback we received and our own research.
Findin