Wild Land News no 63, Spring 2005

Statutory right of access now in force Article

Wednesday 9 February 2005 saw the long-awaited start of statutory access rights in Scotland, as passed in the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003.

There is a dedicated website for access advice, www.outdooraccess-scotland.com. This explains about the Scottish Outdoor Access Code, states how to get a copy, and has downloads of the Code. The full version runs to over 130 pages and comes in a high quality folder from Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).

Information about the code is shown here, together with the code's own special logo. The logo usage is managed by SNH.

Alistair Cant

Know the Code before you go...

Enjoy Scotland's outdoors. Everyone has the right to be on most land and water for recreation, education and for going from place to place providing they act responsibly. These access rights and responsibilities are explained in the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. The key things are:
When you're in the outdoors:

take personal responsibility for your own actions and act safely;
respect people's privacy and peace of mind;
help land managers and others to work safely and effectively;
care for your environment and take your litter home;
keep your dog under proper control;
take extra care if you're organising an event or running a business.
If you're managing the outdoors:

respect access rights;
act reasonably when asking people to avoid land management operations;
work with your local authority and other bodies to help integrate access and land management
respect rights of way and customary access

Find out more by visiting www.outdooraccess-scotland.com or phoning your local Scottish Natural Heritage office.