Riding and jumping on your land

fizzer

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Has anyone else been told from their local council they are not allowed to exercise on their own land.

Someone rang the local council to report my friend having a mobile field shelter, whilst there she noticed her jumps and told her she was not allowed to ride in her own field.
 

FabioandFreddy

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I think (i could be wrong though) that as long as grazing is the main purpose of the land then you can ride in it. Jumps though - can only be out for 28 days in a year otherwise they re-class the land and would need to apply for change of use!
 

TJ&Ozzie

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riding is classed as "keeping" a horse and if your land is agricultural use rather amenity use then riding isn't allowed i'm afraid. Grazing a horse is the only thing you can do with a horse on ag land.
 

Ella19

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If you feed hard feed/hay or ride in your fields then the land needs to be changed to equestrian use from grazing. My friend had this in Warwickshire, it was ridiculous, it was on a country lane in the middle of nowhere but some busybody reported her for feeding the ponies hay and hard feed in the winter.
 

D66

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It's the difference between agricultural use and equestrian use.
If the land is agricultural you can only graze horses on it. If your horses require additional feed, or if you have stables, feed store, or jumps in the field you will require a change of use to equestrian use.

The planner's view is that the difference is an aesthetic one, imagine standing looking over a valley where the landscape is green and animals graze peacefully, or where the fields are split up by white tape, tarps cover haylage bales, horse lorries parked behind timber stables and plastic jumps in every 2 acre field, etc, etc. You may not do these things, but many people do, possibly even the people you eventually sell to. To them it is creeping suburbanisation of the countryside.

Have a look at the council policies on equestrian use and planning application history to see if it is worth applying for change of use.
 

ladyt25

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To be honest I can't actually believe someone's such a busy-body as to report anything like that. Do they have nothing better to do with their lives?! We have had our field for over 20 years, it's agricultural land but every summer we put the jumps out in the field (well, minus one set now that some lovely gypsies decided they'd help themselves to!).
Honestly, I don't see the issue at all seeing as they're not exactly a fixed structure.
 

horsemadelsie

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to be able to do anything with the horses you need equestrian use with no limits. Amenity land will have restrictions, these vary widely (one field we looked at you couldn't even graze animals on it!).
Agricultural land isn't intended for keeping horses but has loopholes from the days when horses worked the land- you might get away with riding if you were fittening them up to 'use on the land' (i'm not sure of all the loopholes exactly).
But you are allowed to do pretty much anything for a total of 28 days, as this is classed as temporary.
 

Dry Rot

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Digger66 has said it all. Me? I breed horses for meat (in case the planners are reading this) but I did hear a rumour that some damn fool on here is trying to ride them!:D:D:D

With a little imagination, lots of rules and regulations can be got around -- or at least challenged. These days councils don't have the money to make a fight of it so if you can put forward a reasoned argument, the chances are, you'll win. Sometimes it pays to get a lawyer or a land agent to put your case. Ever hear the saying, "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance?"
 

MiJodsR2BlinkinTite

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To be honest I can't actually believe someone's such a busy-body as to report anything like that. Do they have nothing better to do with their lives?!

Dunno why, but some people seem to get a kick out of being sneaks; they were probably the snivelling one's at school who'd always sneak off and tell tales, and unfortunately nothing much changes in life.

Every neighbourhood has one unfortunately: you just can't f@rt without someone getting wind of it (sorry! :)).
 

Enfys

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Good grief! How utterly ridiculous can you get :eek: :mad:

I would be thoroughly peed off if some jobsworth came and told me what I could and could not do on my own land.

Yes I do ride and jump on my own land. I also put up appropriate shelters where I feel like it, and have a 100' x 120' sand arena, none of which I require permits for. I also pay hefty taxes and live somewhere where horses are classed as agicultural animals.
 
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Ibblebibble

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so how do farm liveries manage? where i livery the farmer has had liveries for about 15 years or more and never had any queries from the council or any agency about it:confused: he's had problems with the environment agency over other things but nothing has ever been mentioned about the horses (thank goodness!!)
 

lachlanandmarcus

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sometimes farms are allowed to do 'diversification' incl horsey liveries without having to jump through the same planning hoops as a standalone livery yard. So the authorities may take a lighter approach, also farms generally have more land with neighbours not so close so it is viewed as less offensive visually.

This can be why farm livery can often be cheaper (albeit sometimes without as many fancy facilities) as a livery yard.
 

Armas

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Good grief! How utterly ridiculous can you get :eek: :mad:

I would be thoroughly peed off if some jobsworth came and told me what I could and could not do on my own land.

Yes I do ride and jump on my own land. I also put up appropriate shelters where I feel like it, and have a 100' x 120' sand arena, none of which I require permits for. I also pay hefty taxes and live somewhere where horses are classed as agicultural animals.

As above what a load of Bol$%s
 

fornema

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Hate to say it but you do have to have planning permission for even moveable jumps and we have been slapped on the wrist a couple of times for that one, stupid rule.

Also it sounds like you have agricultural rather than equestrian use as they get a grant and by putting permanent structures like stables in they lose this, so you can only have moveable structures.

Its all about money for the landowner :p
 

Enfys

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Originally Posted by Enfys
Good grief! How utterly ridiculous can you get

I would be thoroughly peed off if some jobsworth came and told me what I could and could not do on my own land.

Yes I do ride and jump on my own land. I also put up appropriate shelters where I feel like it, and have a 100' x 120' sand arena, none of which I require permits for. I also pay hefty taxes and live somewhere where horses are classed as agicultural animals.


As above what a load of Bol$%s

Can you tell that neither of us live in the UK eh? :D

Presumably horses are classed as agricultural livestock in France?
 

Armas

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Originally Posted by Enfys
Good grief! How utterly ridiculous can you get

I would be thoroughly peed off if some jobsworth came and told me what I could and could not do on my own land.

Yes I do ride and jump on my own land. I also put up appropriate shelters where I feel like it, and have a 100' x 120' sand arena, none of which I require permits for. I also pay hefty taxes and live somewhere where horses are classed as agicultural animals.




Can you tell that neither of us live in the UK eh? :D

Presumably horses are classed as agricultural livestock in France?

You can buy movable field shelters and jumps that are totally movable. Its not like you are building a house on the site. Ahhh I just want to bang the heads of these jumped up bureaucrats against there desks and shout at them get a life.
 

Alyth

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How absolutely ridiculous!! Thank goodness I live in New Zealand!!! Actually I am gobsmacked to see how things have changed since I grew up in the UK. Only being able to have jumps out for 28 days a year? Not being able to ride on your own land? Moveable shelters don't need planning permission!! This sounds like something out of a horror movie!!
 

Sussexbythesea

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How absolutely ridiculous!! Thank goodness I live in New Zealand!!! Actually I am gobsmacked to see how things have changed since I grew up in the UK. Only being able to have jumps out for 28 days a year? Not being able to ride on your own land? Moveable shelters don't need planning permission!! This sounds like something out of a horror movie!!

We have a massive population and limited countryside 650 people per square mile in UK - England is 1000 per sq mile versus 39 in New Zealand and quite honestly lots of Equestrian uses damage the land, are unsightly with all the paraphernali tat goes with it especially in some areas and lead to the usual trick of eventually building a house on the land, putting up stables and school over a period of years. Nothing like a grassy field with livestock.

Trouble is everyone thinks the rules shouldn't apply to them but if someone doesn't take a wider more strategic view i.e. the council we woudn't have any countryside as we know it.
 

lachlanandmarcus

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It is ironic tho that with the wider access rights horseriders have in Scotland I can ride all over my neighbours fields a much as I want but in theory not on my own :))))does make it a bit mad!
 

Dry Rot

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Originally Posted by Enfys
Good grief! How utterly ridiculous can you get

I would be thoroughly peed off if some jobsworth came and told me what I could and could not do on my own land.

Yes I do ride and jump on my own land. I also put up appropriate shelters where I feel like it, and have a 100' x 120' sand arena, none of which I require permits for. I also pay hefty taxes and live somewhere where horses are classed as agicultural animals.




Can you tell that neither of us live in the UK eh? :D

Presumably horses are classed as agricultural livestock in France?

Yes, horses are "livestock" in the rest of the EU because they ARE sometimes bred and reared for meat on the Continent. That is the main reason medications have to be recorded in horse passports -- so nasty medicines do not go into meat intended for human consumption.

Horses here in the UK are regarded as amenity and there are dispensations for things like burying your horse on your own land (subject to various regulations) as they can be classified as pets. Horses bred commercially have to be disposed of to slaughter or for pet food, which a lot of owners wouldn't like.

Planning is another matter. One legal definition of agriculture is "...livestock breeding and keeping, the use of land as grazing land..." and "livestock" ... "includes any creature kept for the production of food, wool, skins or fur, or for the purpose of its use in the farming of land". (From the Agriculture Holdings (Scotland) Acts). The law being what it is, I am sure there will be other definitions just to keep the lawyers busy!

Strangely, Highland ponies, Clydesdale horses, and, I think, Shetlands, are shown on the agricultural livestock day at The Black Isle show, while other breeds of horses and ponies are shown on another day as traditionally the first are regarded as working breeds and the rest for riding and driving.

I've always found it is worth dipping into the small print when dealing with rules and regulations. There's sometimes a let out clause in there if only you can find it!:D I'm keeping my reasons for having stables and a round pen quiet until I get a visit from the men with the clip boards!
 
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