A village row has erupted after relatives of a wealthy landowner blocked access to a 780ft ‘right of way’ footpath through a nature reserve – installing CCTV cameras while putting up warning signs, black and yellow tape and barbed wire.
The route connecting the Dorset village of Corfe Mullen with the tranquil nature reserve Happy Bottom has been used by local walkers for decades.
Although it is on private land, the former landowner Philip Wilkinson allowed public access for at least 35 years – before he died last September and his family inherited the land.
Walkers were shocked to find security cameras on a tree overlooking the path earlier this year, alongside signs including penned messages alerting people to the CCTV.
And when some walkers ignored the edict and ‘trespassed’, they say the owners employed ‘increasingly aggressive tactics’, including putting up barbed wire and black and yellow tape closing off the path.
People have also been escorted off the land when they tried accessing it, it is claimed.
The family say they ended the access because they cannot keep livestock on the land due the number of loose dogs roaming free.
They also say the route is uneven and they fear being held liable if someone fell and suffered an injury.
Dog walker Jackie Bonham, who has used a now-disputed footpath in Dorset for 19 years since moving to the area with her family, is leading a campaign against new restrictions on access
A former landowner made it a ‘permissive path’ although it has never been a legal right of way. He died last year and the estate has been inherited by his daughter who has closed the path
Local walkers accuse the family of using ‘increasingly aggressive tactics’ including putting up barbed wire and black and yellow tape preventing access
The route connecting Dorset village Corfe Mullen with Happy Bottom nature reserve has been used by local walkers for decades – but right of way is now being limited
Two walkers have previously suffered a broken leg and twisted ankle after taking a tumble.
They claim since the footpath was blocked off there have been vandalism attacks on their property which has led them to call the police ten times.
Now a group of residents have launched a campaign to get a Definitive Map Modification Order (DMMO) to secure the path as a public right of way, but they fear the process could take years as the local authority has a huge backlog.
Jackie Bonham, who has used the path for 19 years since moving to the area with her family, is leading the campaign.
She has already gathered more than 100 statements as evidence of the path’s public use, but applications will have to be submitted to both Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council and Dorset Council as it crosses both authorities’ boundaries.
Ms Bonham said: ‘It’s a lovely little nature walk and goes up to the Corfe Mullen nature reserve and barrows.
‘I have been using it for 19 years but other people have evidence of it being used 35 years ago.
‘I didn’t expect such a massive response, but many people have used the route well over the 20-year qualification period – one supporter even contacted me from Australia.
Jackie Bonham is pictured here with fellow campaigner Ian Cope and their dogs
The family of the late Peter Wilkinson say they ended the access because they cannot keep livestock on the land due the number of loose dogs roaming free
‘Unfortunately, Dorset Council has such a backlog that they may not review our application for up to ten years. By then, who knows whether the path will even be usable.
‘It’s a pain because now you can’t get to Happy Bottom from Merley. It was a good circular route people liked to walk but now you have to go round – it’s a shame.’
Locals are also concerned the land appears to be on the Local Plan, earmarked for a development of more than 20 homes to help meet Government housebuilding targets.
The owners denied any knowledge of this and said they do not support development on their land.
A family spokesman said locals cannot get a DMMO as it has always been a permissive path – a route on private land where the landowner has granted voluntary permission for the public to pass, but without creating a legal right of way.
This means the landowner can withdraw access at any time, and the public does not gain any permanent legal rights to use the path.
She said: ‘My family has owned the land for about 17 years. It has always been a permissive path so no right of way can be claimed.
‘Over the years my family have tried to fence off the path but my father gave permission for people to walk it because people kept destroying anything he put up.
A group of residents have launched a campaign to get a Definitive Map Modification Order (DMMO), to secure the path as a public right of way
Jackie Bonham (pictured with fellow campaigners) says she has already gathered more than 100 statements as evidence of the path’s public use
‘It’s uneven ground and steep in places and two young, fit people have hurt themselves – one lady broke her leg and another guy twisted his ankle badly – so we’ve made the decision its not safe for people to walk there.
‘I’ve not closed it for a malicious reason, it’s purely because it’s not safe for people to walk and I don’t want to be liable for that.
‘I also can’t keep my animals there with all the loose dogs. People throw their dog mess in bags into the undergrowth, which is dangerous for animals, and the dogs run all over the rest of my land.
‘I contacted the council to check it wasn’t a right of way. They said it’s your private land, you’re entitled to close it.
‘But there has been ongoing and repeated theft and vandalism. Signs get taken down, fences cut. We’ve ended up putting up CCTV because the police said unless you catch people doing it there’s little they can do.
‘We had to put yellow tape on the barbed wire because people were cutting it down then saying I have left a dangerous trap for cyclists.’
The owners said they have offered to discuss with locals if they can come up with a way for the path to remain open.
A spokesman for Dorset Police confirmed they had received ten separate reports of theft, criminal damage and trespassing on the land between March and July.
CCTV has been installed in the trees, with warnings on signs that security cameras are there
The route connecting the Dorset village Corfe Mullen with Happy Bottom nature reserve covers two different councils
She said: ‘Proportionate investigations were carried out to establish any viable lines of enquiry. No arrests have been made.’
A Dorset Council spokesman said: ‘The path currently has no definitive status. We have received enquiries about submitting a Definitive Map Modification Order (DMMO) application to record a path near Happy Bottom as a public right of way.
‘There is no legal mechanism to prevent a landowner from closing an unrecorded path.
‘Dorset Council has a backlog of DMMO applications due to the number of applications we receive and the time it takes to investigate each one, which is a detailed and lengthy process with several statutory stages.’
