Formal adoption documentation for public footpaths in Brentford

Hounslow Borough Council did not have the information requested.

Dear Hounslow Borough Council,

I have noticed on the Council’s inter-active Highways Register map of adopted highways and rights of way, that there are anomalies respecting Right of Way footpaths Nos. 30 & 31 in Brentford.

Right of Way No. 31 is both marked as such (with blue line), AND as adopted ‘footway’ [sic] in yellow shading. It seems redundant that a public footpath maintainable at the public expense under the National Parks & Access to Countryside Act 1949 should be later ‘adopted’ as a public footpath maintainable at the public expense under the Highways Act 1980. I would be grateful for copies of the documentation recording the formal adoption of this footpath.

Right of way No. 30, on the other hand, is divided into two sections: the blue line marking the public right of way runs from Dock Road westwards only as far as the south end of the footbridge (and is NOT coloured as ‘adopted footway’), whereas the footbridge itself, inclusive of all the peninsula north of the river between existing fencing and the river wall as far as Brent Way, is marked only as ‘adopted footway’ – not additional to (as with RoW No. 31) but INSTEAD of, the public right of way that ran over the bridge and along the path to Brent Way.

I would be grateful for copies of any formal revocation of the public footpath right of way status as suggested by the map, and for copies of the documentation recording the formal adoption of the yellow shaded (expanded) area in its place.

Yours faithfully,

Nigel Moore

Freedom of Information, Hounslow Borough Council

Dear Resident/Member of the public,

Thank you for your email about a Freedom of Information.

 

We will either deal with your request or pass it onto our service teams to
provide you with a response.    

o   Freedom of Information (FOI) requests – the Council will respond
within 20 working days from the time of receipt if this is within working
hours, or, if received out of hours, from the next working
day.[1]https://www.hounslow.gov.uk/info/20110/o...

o   To comply with the Local Government Transparency Code 2015 further
information can be found
at[2]https://www.hounslow.gov.uk/info/20110/o...

 Yours sincerely,

Customer Relations Team

References

Visible links
1. https://www.hounslow.gov.uk/info/20110/o...
2. https://www.hounslow.gov.uk/info/20110/o...

London Borough of Hounslow,

[1]London Borough of Hounslow
18-Jul-2018

Dear 

Thank you for your request for information. The reference number
is FIR000257

We will respond to your request within 20 working days. If we need
clarification, we will contact you.

Please use the reference number above for all future communication about
this case. You will be able to track the progress of this case by
logging into your My Hounslow Account.

Further information can be found on our website at the following link:

[2]Freedom of Information & Environmental Information Regulations

Kind Regards

Customer Relations Team

[3]Unsubscribe from these emails.

References

Visible links
1. https://myaccount.hounslow.gov.uk/q
2. https://www.hounslow.gov.uk/info/20110/o...
3. http://email.myaccount.hounslow.gov.uk/u...

Freedom of Information, Hounslow Borough Council

Dear Nigel Moore,

Thank you for your below FOI request.

This has been logged under reference number FIR000257 to the service team for a response. This response will follow to you within the 20 working day deadline.

Kind Regards,

Joseph | Customer Relations Officer
London Borough of Hounslow, Civic Centre, Lampton Road, Hounslow, TW3 4DN
Tel: 020 8583 5211 | Email: [Hounslow Borough Council request email] 

Information about Council services can be found on our website www.hounslow.gov.uk

Follow us online: Twitter: @LBofHounslow and Facebook: www.facebook.com/HounslowCouncil

show quoted sections

Seth Twombley, Hounslow Borough Council

2 Attachments

Dear Mr Moore

 

Re: FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOI) 2000 or ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION
REGULATIONS (EIR) 2004 RESPONSE

 

I am writing regarding your request for information dated 17 July 2018.
You have requested the following information in regards to formal adoption
documentation for public footpaths in Brentford: 

Dear Hounslow Borough Council,

 

I have noticed on the Council’s inter-active Highways Register map of
adopted highways and rights of way, that there are anomalies respecting
Right of Way footpaths Nos. 30 & 31 in Brentford.

 

Right of Way No. 31 is both marked as such (with blue line), AND as
adopted ‘footway’ [sic] in yellow shading. It seems redundant that a
public footpath maintainable at the public expense under the National
Parks & Access to Countryside Act 1949 should be later ‘adopted’ as a
public footpath maintainable at the public expense under the Highways Act
1980. I would be grateful for copies of the documentation recording the
formal adoption of this footpath.

 

Right of way No. 30, on the other hand, is divided into two sections: the
blue line marking the public right of way runs from Dock Road westwards
only as far as the south end of the footbridge (and is NOT coloured as
‘adopted footway’), whereas the footbridge itself, inclusive of all the
peninsula north of the river between existing fencing and the river wall
as far as Brent Way, is marked only as ‘adopted footway’ – not additional
to (as with RoW No. 31) but INSTEAD of, the public right of way that ran
over the bridge and along the path to Brent Way.

 

I would be grateful for copies of any formal revocation of the public
footpath right of way status as suggested by the map, and for copies of
the documentation recording the formal adoption of the yellow shaded
(expanded) area in its place.

Please find our response below:

 

The maps below indicate where public right of way 30 & 31 are located.

 

Screenshot from our mapping system (rights of way as purple dotted line):

 

Screenshot from interactive map:

 

Given the above, I believe the right of way 30 that you refer to, is
actually n.31 as shown above. Right of way 31 runs west from Dock Road
towards Brent Way in Brentford. According to our mapping system, and the
older highways register card, the public right of way (PROW) extends the
full length of the footpath (including over the bridge and to Brent Way).
The PROW has not been revoked or modified to our knowledge, so should be
shown as such on the mapping system and on the interactive map you’ve
used. This is therefore incorrect on the maps and will need to be amended
by colleagues in order that the PROW is correctly shown to it’s full
extent - thank you for bringing this to our attention.

 

With regards to the adopted footway status of the section of path nearest
to Brent Way (still right of way 31), this is correct and once the PROW
status is correctly marked, this section of footpath will be shown as both
PROW and adopted footway. We do not feel there is any conflict in this,
PROW’s confer rights of access to the public, and adopted public highways
essentially do the same thing. The yellow shading on the mapping system
means that the street or path is adopted as public highway, and maintained
by the council. PROWs are not necessarily maintained by the council
(although my colleague has advised that they can step in to maintain a
PROW even if it runs across private land). In cases where both are shown
on the map, it indicates that as well as being a PROW, the council is also
responsible for its maintenance and that maintenance is undertaken by the
Highways department. In terms of documentation relating to adoption, my
colleagues have advised that historic roads such as this sometimes have
incomplete records, in this case we don’t hold the specific adoption
records for the section of right of way 31 in question although that
section is shown as adopted on our mapping system.

 

In your enquiry you ask for documentation on the formal adoption of right
of way 30. As identified above – this is a short footpath running along
Ferry Wharf, and is only marked as public right of way (not adopted
footway) on both the interactive map and our mapping system. That being
the case I’m not able to provide you with information on adoption
paperwork. It may be that you have another location in mind, or
alternatively if you can expand further on this, then I would be happy to
look into it again.

 

 

The response to your request has been dealt with under the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 or the Environmental Information Regulations (EIR)
2004.

 

Copyright and misuse of information

 

Most of the information that is provided in response to a FOI or EIR
request will be owned by the London Borough of Hounslow and is therefore
covered by the [1]Open Government Licence. However, the copyright of some
of the information we share may be owned by another person or organisation
(eg Ordnance Survey).

 

Individuals and organisations are free to re-use any information covered
by the Open Government Licence for commercial or non-commercial purposes,
provided the terms of the licence are adhered to. Where the copyright of
the information is owned by another person or organisation, you must apply
to the copyright owner to obtain their permission for re-use.

 

If you wish to make a request for information again, please complete the
online, which you can access by following the link below, as this will
provide us with the required information to ensure a prompt response to
your request:

 

[2]Freedom Of Information online request

 

If you do not feel that the Council has dealt with your request for
information appropriately or wish to request a review of this response,
please contact the FOI Review Officer at [3][Hounslow Borough Council request email]

 

I hope this is useful, but if you do wish to provide further information
please let me know and I will see what I can do to assist.

 

Kind regards

Seth

 

Seth Twombley |Transport Project Officer (Consultation, Community
Engagement, Business Systems)

Traffic,Transport & Environmental Strategy

Chief Executive’s Department

London Borough of Hounslow

Office: 020 8583 5213

[4]www.hounslow.gov.uk

Follow us online: Twitter: @LBofHounslow and Facebook:
[5]www.facebook.com/HounslowCouncil

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

Visible links
1. http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/o...
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/o...
2. http://www.hounslow.gov.uk/index/council...
3. mailto:[Hounslow Borough Council request email]
4. http://www.hounslow.gov.uk/
5. http://www.facebook.com/HounslowCouncil

Dear Seth Twombley,

Thank you for your responses, and the confirmation that you do not hold records of any adoption of these footpaths. I am sorry that confusion appears to have arisen over the contemporary numbering of the rights of way (your PROW 30 formed no part of my enquiry, though you are correct that your PROW 31 is one of the paths I referred to). I appreciate the appended maps you included to help identify what we are talking about. Hoping that this works, here is a link to a snapshot of the paths I have referred to, with the path I identified as RoW No.31 outlined in red – https://imgur.com/rHdEGp9

There does, however, appear to be further confusion evidenced in your colleague’s comments as quoted by you. If I can point out with respect - all registered public paths identified and recorded in the Definitive Maps & Statements made under the 1949 Act have been, since 1959, highways maintainable at the public expense. In the cases in question then, your colleague’s statement that “PROWs are not necessarily maintained by the council” has no relevance, and the claim that shading to indicate adopted highway means that “the council is ALSO responsible for its maintenance” is misconceived.

What you now call PROW 31, was illustrated and defined under the 1949 legislation and thereafter, as RoW No.30, having been found to be used as an historic public right of way for 20 years or more at the time of that Act. The same applies to RoW No.31 - whatever the current numbering of that might be - that lies to the west of your PROW 31. Both these and all other registered paths under the 1949 Act are paths which the Council has a responsibility to maintain.

The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949, s.47-(1) provided: “Subject to the following provisions of this Part of this Act, the rule of law whereby a highway is repairable by the inhabitants at large shall apply to all public paths, whether coming into existence before or after the commencement of this Act, notwithstanding anything contained in any enactment passed or made before the commencement of this Act and notwithstanding any liability to repair of any other person: and accordingly the enactments relating to highways so repairable shall have effect in relation to all such public paths.”

The provisional definitive maps and statements dating from 1953 for the relevant area, identified and defined the public footpaths which are the burden of my enquiry. Six years later, all such paths were to become “maintainable at the public expense” : -

Highways Act 1959, s.38 – (1) “After the commencement of this Act no duty with respect to the maintenance of highways shall lie on the inhabitants at large of any area. (2) Without prejudice to any other enactment . . .the following highways shall for the purposes of this Act be highways maintainable at the public expense, that is to say – (a) a highway which immediately before the commencement of this Act was maintainable by the inhabitants at large of any area or maintainable by a highway authority;”

It follows that both of the paths I am asking about, being so registered, are paths maintainable by the relevant highway authority, i.e. in this case Hounslow Council.

The Revised Definitive Statement (dated 1959) drafted according to the 1949 Act, describes Right of Way No.30 as being a ‘Footpath’ which “Starts on the west side of Dock Road at a wicket gate giving access to concrete steps with iron handrails and then passes along the South side of the dock in a westerly direction. The path continues along the south bank of the River Brent over ash path, turns North across the river by means of a footbridge and then West along the North bank. The path ends at its junction with The Ham immediately north of Railway Bridge.” This accords with what you now describe as PROW No.31.

None of the land over which this footpath ran was ever in the ownership of the Council; it was all privately owned, but was nonetheless subject to the right of the public to traverse it under statutory authority since 1793 reinforcing common law, (the first 18thC bridge being a replacement for the historic British trackway that had utilised the ancient Brent ford prior even to the Roman invasion of BC54, the ford having been rendered impassable by the scouring works of the Grand Junction Canal Company).

The bridge existing at the time of the latest revised Definitive Map & Statement of 1959 was subsequently demolished in 1964 and replaced with one built by the GLC in 1976, but the right of way as described remained applicable – as it does, of course, with the new bridge now in place – and it remains, as it has since 1959, a highway maintainable at the public expense.

The Highways Act 1980, s.36 – (1) provided: “All such highways as immediately before the commencement of this Act were highways maintainable at the public expense for the purposes of the Highways Act 1959 CONTINUE to be so maintainable . . . for the purposes of this Act.”

That Act further provided that new paths and roads could also be adopted as highways maintainable at the public expense, but that could scarcely be applicable to paths already carrying that status.

The 1980 Act provided for highways to be adopted by dedication (s.37) or agreement (s.38) – but either route would be superfluous in the case of those already maintainable at the public expense. The same applies to Part XI of the Act and s.228 etc. In any event, for the adoption to be valid proper records would have to have been kept and held available for public viewing – as, for example, s.37(3) :- “If the council certify that the way has been dedicated . . . the highway shall . . . become for the purposes of this Act a highway maintainable at the public expense.” & s.37(5) “Where a certificate has been issued by a council under subsection (3) above, or an order has been made under subsection (4) above, the certificate or a copy of the order, as the case may be, shall be deposited with the proper officer of the council and may be inspected by any person free of charge at all reasonable hours.”

This accords with the similar provisions under the 1949 Act, s.32 – (1) providing: “the surveying authority shall prepare a definitive map and statement, and shall cause notice of the preparation thereof, and of places where copies thereof may be inspected at all reasonable hours . . .”

The statutory duty to keep these records does not make allowances for “incomplete records” pertaining to “historic roads such as this”. Given that you “don’t hold the specific adoption records for the section of right of way 31 in question”, then that can only be because no such adoption process took place – as indeed, was never necessary. The records that were kept, of which I have copies, plainly confirm the Council’s maintenance duties respecting the public “right of way 31 in question” as being provided for under the terms of the 1949 Act, and which were confirmed as ongoing by the subsequent relevant Acts.

This would have to hold true also, for what I have described as RoW No.31. I don’t know what alternative numbering you will now be using for that one – maybe PROW 32? It is the towpath beside the river Brent running from west of the Augustus Close bridge, curving north to the High Street. It is the one I have outlined in red in the linked map. In that case, the Definitive Statement describes the whole of the path between the river wall and the retaining wall as comprising the public footpath, so the yellow shaded area on the interactive mapping system adds nothing whatever to the situation anyway. The yellow shaded area of the other path, however, extends for no discernible reason, far beyond the described registered path in all directions!

It seems that colouring of these 2 areas as adopted footpaths on the interactive map has arisen from some confusion over the grounds of council responsibility for registered rights of way, and – as you have divulged – is not substantiated by any documentary evidence.

The interactive map has no legal authority as to adopted highway status in the absence of any such evidence; certainly, the Council has never in the past 30 years to my certain knowledge, ever undertaken any ‘maintenance’ of the areas alongside and/or underneath the footbridge, nor alongside the paved path to the west of it, in PROW 31. Indeed, the Council has in fact, in successive consents since 1975, authorised railings and fencing to restrict (for safety’s sake) public access to within the confines of the right of way as described in the definitive statement. So there is neither practical nor legal point behind “that section” – being – “shown as adopted on our mapping system”; in light of your information, the interactive map is simply inaccurate in that respect.

I would be happy to meet in person with your colleague/s in the relevant department, to share the documentation we each have in an attempt to clarify exactly what has given rise to this mistake. I am sure that they would be interested in some of the more historic material I have, if they are as engaged as I find myself, in Brentford’s history.

With thanks again for your efforts in attention to my request,

Yours sincerely,

Nigel Moore

Seth Twombley, Hounslow Borough Council

Dear Nigel
Thank you for your detailed response and suggestions which are appreciated. My colleague in Transport Planning is looking into this, and we will be back in contact.

Kind regards
Seth

Seth Twombley |Transport Project Officer (Consultation, Community Engagement, Business Systems)
Traffic,Transport & Environmental Strategy
Chief Executive’s Department
London Borough of Hounslow
Office: 020 8583 5213
www.hounslow.gov.uk
Follow us online: Twitter: @LBofHounslow and Facebook: www.facebook.com/HounslowCouncil

Car free day is September 22, why not make it a carefree day to come on the street and play? Apply for a Play Street today!

show quoted sections