Dairy farmer loses bid to divert ‘dangerous’ footpath

A dairy farmer’s 10-year battle to divert a “dangerous” public footpath through his busy farmyard has been turned down following a single objection from the Open Spaces Society (OSS).
Herefordshire District Council submitted an application to the Planning Inspectorate to relocate a public footpath that runs through Covenhope Farm in Aymestrey amid health and safety and biosecurity concerns.
Farmer John Probert said walkers who frequently pass through his yard were at risk of serious injury or worse as dairy cattle are herded twice daily, a bull and a sheep regularly, and heavy machinery is in frequent use.
He had proposed to divert the footpath to an alternative route 130m away, which he said was “more picturesque and safer” and would give walkers a “better view of the valley”.
Mr Probert had successfully applied for a council order under the Highways Act 1980, which allows landowners to divert a public right of way on their land, provided the new route will not inconvenience the public.
The Ramblers Association backed the plans, saying the “new footpath is not substantially less convenient and represents a reasonable alternative to the existing path”.
However, rural conservation charity OSS claimed the new track would be less convenient for members of the public and high hedges on either side of the road meant walkers had to be continually alert to the possibility of passing vehicles.
It raised an objection with the Planning Inspectorate, which inspector Mark Yates accepted and refused to grant the order.
“I am not of the view that the proposed termination point could be described as ‘substantially as convenient’. Therefore, I conclude that this test is failed and that the order cannot be confirmed,” he concluded.
“This decision must not be allowed to stand. It would mean that the interests of the landowner have no weight in rights of way decisions, even where a landowner could be held liable for walkers passing through dangerous locations.”
Helen Hamilton, Marches Planning Consultancy
Mr Probert said he was “surprised and disappointed” by the decision as the alternative route was a “commonsensical approach”.
“We get many people walking through the farm, through cows and calves, often with a bull in the herd,” he said.
“It’s quite a worry. They don’t understand the unpredictability of these animals and just march straight through. You can try and make them aware of what can happen, but very often our advice is completely ignored.
“A farmyard is quite a dangerous place and with all the serious accidents and deaths we have had on farms in the past few years, particularly with bulls and cows, perhaps it’s time for a rethink.
“Sadly, it’s only when someone suffers a misfortune that lessons are learned. I wouldn’t want that to happen on this farm.”
Helen Hamilton, of Marches Planning Consultancy, which acted for the landowner, said the decision threatened the ability of landowners to have rights of way diverted “even when walkers are at risk”.
“This decision must not be allowed to stand. It would mean that the interests of the landowner have no weight in rights of way decisions, even where a landowner could be held liable for walkers passing through dangerous locations,” she added.
The Proberts intend to challenge this ruling via a High Court judicial review with the support of the NFU. The Country Land and Business Association is also following the case with close interest.
Covenhope Farm is a mixed family-run farm, based in Aymestrey, Leominster, north Herefordshire, with a dairy herd of 160 milking cows, a flock of 400 Texel and Charollais sheep, and 32ha (80 acres) of maize.
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