Trees, hedges and vegetation on rights of way

We receive quite a few calls each year reporting problems with overgrown hedges and surface vegetation. These problems can cause inconvenience to walkers and therefore we will work with landowners to keep this interference to a minimum.

Trees growing in the surface of a path are our responsibility.

Hedges forming a boundary between the path and neighbouring land, for example your garden or a field in your ownership, generally belong to you.

If the path is obstructed by the boundary hedge we have powers to ensure that any overhanging vegetation obstructing the passage of pedestrians, vehicles and horse riders is removed. We will deal with these by contacting the owner of the hedge and requesting the work to be done. A notice will be served ensuring that we can carry out the work using our default powers if the work is not done within 14 days.

If there is a branch over hanging the path and it looks dangerous we will deal with this as quickly as possible by contacting the owner of the tree.