Following an inquiry, the Inspector appointed by the Secretary of State concluded on the balance of probabilities that two gates with signs saying ‘Private’ had been present on the footpath during the relevant twenty-year period. The Inspector also concluded that the wording and location of the signs was sufficiently clear to render use of the footpath contentious and not as of right. For the same reasons, the landowners had also demonstrated their intention not to dedicate the route as a footpath, which precluded the statutory presumption of dedication from arising.

The decision emphasises the importance of assessing whether a landowner has made known their opposition to the use of a route on an objective, rather than subjective, basis. Each case will be fact-specific, but the wording and location of any signs will be key factors in any such assessment.

Gregory Jones KC and Michael Feeney, instructed by James Smith of James Smith Planning Law Services, acted on behalf of an objecting landowner. A copy of the decision can be found here.