Countryside (Scotland) Act 1967

11 Rights of public where access agreement or order in force. S

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this Part of this Act, where an access agreement or order is in force as respects any land, a person who enters upon land comprised in the agreement or order for the purpose of open-air recreation without causing damage, or who is on such land for that purpose after having so entered thereon, shall not be treated as a trespasser on that land or incur any other liability by reason only of so entering or being on the land:

Provided that this subsection shall not apply to land which for the time being is excepted land as hereinafter defined except in so far as an access agreement provides that it shall so apply.

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(2) Nothing in the provisions of the foregoing subsection shall entitle a person to enter or be on any land, or to do anything thereon, in contravention of any prohibition contained in or having effect under any enactment.

(3) An access agreement or order may specify or provide for imposing restrictions subject to which persons may enter or be upon land by virtue of subsection (1) above, including in particular, but without prejudice to the generality of this subsection, restrictions excluding the land or any part thereof at particular times from the operation of the said subsection (1); and that subsection shall not apply to any person entering or being on the land in contravention of any such restriction or failing to comply therewith while he is on the land.

(4) Without prejudice to the provisions of the last foregoing subsection, subsection (1) above shall have effect subject to the provisions of Schedule 2 to this Act as to the general restrictions to be observed by persons having rights of access by virtue of the said subsection (1).

(5) For the purpose of this Part of this Act, the expression “excepted land” means land which for the time being is of any of the following descriptions, that is to say—

(a) land used for agricultural purposes other than livestock rearing land, being land which was so used at the date when the relevant access agreement or order was made;

(b) land comprised in a declaration for the time being in force under section 19 of the National Parks and Access to the M1 Countryside Act 1949 (declarations that areas are nature reserves) or that section as applied by section 21 of that Act, in so far as that land is subject to byelaws made under section 20 of that Act or under that section as applied by the said section 21 prohibiting entry of persons;

(c) land covered by buildings or the curtilage of such land;

(d) land used for the purpose of a park, garden or pleasure ground, being land which was so used at the date when the relevant access agreement or order was made;

(e) land used for the getting of minerals by surface working (including quarrying), land used for the purposes of a railway (including a light railway) or tramway, or land used for the purposes of a golf course, sports ground, playing field, racecourse or aerodrome within the meaning of the M2 Civil Aviation Act 1949 as extended by the M3 Airports Authority Act 1965;

(f) land (not falling within the foregoing paragraphs of this subsection) covered by works used for the purposes of a statutory undertaking [F2 or a telecommunications system] or the curtilage of such land;

(g) land excepted from the application of this section in accordance with the provisions of section 15 below:

(h) land as respects which development is in course of being carried out which will result in the land becoming such land as is specified in paragraphs (c), (e) and (f) of this subsection:

Provided that land which is for the time being comprised in an access agreement or order shall not become excepted land by reason of any development carried out thereon, or any change of use made thereof, if the development or change of use is one for which under the Act of 1947 planning permission is required and either that permission has not been granted or any condition subject to which it was granted has been contravened or has not been complied with.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words repealed by Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1969 (c. 52), Sch. Pt. VII

F2 Words inserted by Telecommunications Act 1984 (c. 12, SIF 96), Sch. 4 para. 46(1)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 References to the Civil Aviation Act 1949 and the Airports Authority Act 1965 to be construed respectively as references to the Civil Aviation Act 1982 (c. 16, SIF 9) and the Airports Authority Act 1975 (c. 78, SIF 9) by virtue of Interpretation Act 1978 (c. 30, SIF 115:1), s. 17(2)(a) and s. 25(8) of the said 1975 Act

C2 S. 11(5)(f) extended by Post Office Act 1969 (c. 48), Sch. 4 para. 93(1) (xxvii) and Civil Aviation Act 1971 (c. 75), Sch. 5 para. 5(x)

Marginal Citations

M1 1949 c. 97.

M2 1949 c. 67.

M3 1965 c. 16.