Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000

1 Principal definitions for Part I. E+W

(1) In this Part “access land” means any land which—

(a) is shown as open country on a map in conclusive form issued by the appropriate countryside body for the purposes of this Part,

(b) is shown on such a map as registered common land,

(c) is registered common land in any area outside Inner London for which no such map relating to registered common land has been issued,

(d) is situated more than 600 metres above sea level in any area for which no such map relating to open country has been issued, or

(e) is dedicated for the purposes of this Part under section 16,

but does not (in any of those cases) include excepted land or land which is treated by section 15(1) as being accessible to the public apart from this Act.

(2) In this Part—

• “access authority”—

  (a)

  in relation to land in a National Park, means the National Park authority, and

  (b)

  in relation to any other land, means the local highway authority in whose area the land is situated;

• “the appropriate countryside body” means—

  (a)

  in relation to England, the Countryside Agency, and

  (b)

  in relation to Wales, the Countryside Council for Wales;

• “excepted land” means land which is for the time being of any of the descriptions specified in Part I of Schedule 1, those descriptions having effect subject to Part II of that Schedule;

• “mountain” includes, subject to the following definition, any land situated more than 600 metres above sea level;

• “mountain, moor, heath or down” does not include land which appears to the appropriate countryside body to consist of improved or semi-improved grassland;

• “open country” means land which—

  (a)

  appears to the appropriate countryside body to consist wholly or predominantly of mountain, moor, heath or down, and

  (b)

  is not registered common land.

(3) In this Part “registered common land” means—

(a) land which is registered as common land under the M1 Commons Registration Act 1965 (in this section referred to as “the 1965 Act”) and whose registration under that Act has become final, or

(b) subject to subsection (4), land which fell within paragraph (a) on the day on which this Act is passed or at any time after that day but has subsequently ceased to be registered as common land under the 1965 Act on the register of common land in which it was included being amended by reason of the land having ceased to be common land within the meaning of that Act.

(4) Subsection (3)(b) does not apply where—

(a) the amendment of the register of common land was made in pursuance of an application made before the day on which this Act is passed, or

(b) the land ceased to be common land by reason of the exercise of—

(i) any power of compulsory purchase, of appropriation or of sale which is conferred by an enactment,

(ii) any power so conferred under which land may be made common land within the meaning of the 1965 Act in substitution for other land.

Marginal Citations

M1 1965 c. 64.