Protecting your land for future development

April 14, 2011 - PRLog -- Alistair says,

“In recent years, a large amount of vacant land has been earmarked for future development, dramatically increasing its value, however, under the Commons Act 2006, it is possible for the plans to be blocked by the registration of the land as a town or village green (TVG).

Once the land is registered as a TVG all building on the land becomes illegal and this subsequently removes the development value.”

The purpose of the Commons Act 2006 is to protect common land, promote sustainable farming, protect public access to the countryside and protect the interests of wildlife. Under the Act any person can apply to register the land as a TVG under Section 15(2), (3) or (4) by satisfying the following criteria, that:

‘A significant number of the inhabitants of any locality, or of any neighbourhood within a locality, have indulged as of right (without force, secrecy or permission) in lawful sports and pastimes on the land for a (continuous) period of at least 20 years.’

Alistair continues,

“The 2006 Act introduced two and five year grace periods during which applications for TVGs could be submitted even after recreational use has ceased. This means that if an application for a TVG is successful after development work has been done, a developer must undo any work carried out and return the land to its previous state.”

There are several ways to protect your land:

•   Erect secure fencing and gates.
•   Erect prohibitory notices – however, the wording must clearly prevent use of the land as being ‘as of right’ and the erection of all notices must be documented.
•   Erect permissive notices – these are used on large pieces of land which would otherwise be expensive to enclose and secure. However, they can only be used if the land has not yet reached 20 years ‘as of right’.

Alistair finishes,

“The legal approach to this issue is key to protecting your land.

“Whether or not you are considering if your land is suitable for future development, it may be sensible to seek the advice of an experienced property law solicitor who can help you consider not only the historic use of the land, but also advise on the potential threat of a TVG registration on your land.

“Tallents can help you carry out an audit of your land to help you assess whether the land is open or if the public have, or potentially have, access to it.”


/ENDS

For more information, contact Tallents on 01636 813411


Tallents Solicitors, 2 Westgate, Southwell
http://www.tallents.co.uk


ABOUT TALLENTS

Established in 1774 and with offices in Newark, Mansfield and Southwell, Tallents Solicitors services the legal needs of private individuals, company and commercial clients and farmers in North Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire.

We still offer a personal service to our clients and our size and structure ensures that partners are never remote from our clients. We provide a full range of legal services and our expertise covers all areas of law including:

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In 2009, Tallents celebrated 235 years, having served more than nine generations of North Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire people. This makes Tallents one of the oldest law firms in the county and possibly the UK.

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