Dispute Over Kintbury Footpath Heats Up

The planning inspector in charge of a disputed footpath at Barton Court in Kintbury has retired to consider the evidence.

Walking group West Berkshire Ramblers want the route recognised as a public footpath. Pippa and James Matthews say the family's high profile means they need extra security at the property.

West Berkshire Council told the inquiry the claim rests on a legal principle: a route can become a public footpath if the public have used it openly and without permission for 20 years, or if past dedication has been accepted by public use.

The barrister for James Matthews challenged witnesses who said they'd used the route for decades, arguing memories of childhood use can be unreliable and often exaggerated.

Emma Rowland, for the Ramblers, said nobody had been stopped from using the route over the years and it should stay open to the public.

Mr Matthews said conveyancing did not flag any public use when he bought the house. He had an electric security gate installed in September 2022, and the Ramblers applied for a definitive map modification order in January 2023.

He told the inquiry the gate is kept shut apart from occasional visits and that, since the footpath application, security at the Station Road gates had been upgraded and kept closed.

Inspector Ken Taylor visited the site after hearings at Coronation Hall, which heard evidence from both the Matthews and ramblers. Council documents said the route was reasonably alleged to exist as a public right of way based on the evidence and case law.

Mr Matthews said the drive is rarely used - he has seen only a handful of people on maybe two or three occasions in the last three-and-a-half years - and he spoke to those people, telling them it was a private drive.

David Hill, Barton Court's estate manager from 2016 to 2022, said he occasionally found someone who seemed lost, roughly once every two to three months, but there was no consistent pattern of people coming and going.

Local statements said past owners respected the right of way and that the current owners' obstructions were a recent change. One resident said closing Mill Lane would interrupt free movement for people who enjoy Kintbury and its countryside.

Planning inspector's findings usually take around six weeks to publish.

Niki Hinman, Local Democracy Reporter