Calls for wider access to nature after Supreme Court ruling on Dartmoor camping

Rhyl Journal

21-05-2025

Five justices unanimously ruled on Wednesday that the term 'recreation' in the law governing the use of the national park in Devon – the only national park where wild camping is allowed – is used 'without qualification as to the form which it should take'.
Two landowners, Alexander and Diana Darwall, had challenged a Court of Appeal ruling, which said the law allows the public to camp on the Dartmoor commons provided bylaws are followed, at the UK's highest court.
The couple said they were 'disappointed' by the judgment, while the chief executive of the Dartmoor National Park Authority (DNPA), which opposed the challenge, said he was 'delighted and relieved'.
Following the ruling, Guy Shrubsole, co-founder of campaign group Right to Roam, said he was 'elated' and called for changes to the law around wild camping.
He said: 'What I think this case has also really highlighted is how unusual and odd it is that Dartmoor is the only place where there is a legal right to wild camp in England and Wales.
'Over in Scotland, over the border, there is a right to wild camp almost everywhere, and so that's why we are now really keen for the Government to take note of this, of a huge amount of public interest this case has stirred up, to see the public support for the right to wild camp and to extend the law.
'We want them to change the law now, so that actually people in England can enjoy the right to wild camp, the right to roam over much more of our beautiful countryside.'
He continued: 'Thousands on thousands of people wild camp every year on Dartmoor, without anybody knowing that they're there, without leaving a trace, and often picking up litter afterwards.
'Often the trace that is left is the trace on people's hearts and minds and souls when they undertake this wonderful experience of sleeping under the stars on Dartmoor and seeing the world.'
Calls for changes to the law were echoed by South Devon Liberal Democrat MP Caroline Voaden and Bolton West Labour MP Phil Brickell, who both attended the Supreme Court on Wednesday.
Ms Voaden said she was 'absolutely thrilled' with the decision, but added that the public only have access to 8% of land in the UK.
'It just proves that the right to access is fundamental for people to be able to live a healthy, happy life,' she said.
'It's not just a nice-to-have – we need access to nature, and we've now seen that we have the right to wild camp on Dartmoor, and the stars are for everyone.'
She continued: 'The right piece of legislation now is the legislation that covers national parks, and looking at that, and looking at how we can define wild camping in law, so it's clearly defined, and then try and expand it to other national parks in the UK.'
Dartmoor National Park, designated in 1951, covers a 368-square-mile area which features 'commons' – areas of unenclosed, privately-owned moorland where locals can put livestock.
The case concerned the interpretation of the Dartmoor Commons Act 1985, which says 'the public shall have the right of access to the commons on foot and on horseback for the purpose of open-air recreation' on the commons.
In January 2023, High Court judge Sir Julian Flaux ruled that the 1985 Act did not allow people to pitch tents overnight on the Dartmoor commons without landowners' permission.
But the Court of Appeal overturned the decision in July that year after a challenge by the DNPA, with three senior judges ruling that the law 'confers on members of the public the right to rest or sleep on the Dartmoor commons, whether by day or night and whether in a tent or otherwise'.
Mr and Mrs Darwall keep cattle on Stall Moor, which forms part of their more than 3,450-acre estate in the southern part of the national park.
Their lawyers told the Supreme Court last October that some campers cause problems to livestock and the environment, and that the law only gives the public access on foot and horseback.
Timothy Morshead KC, for the couple, also said in written submissions that they were 'not motivated by a desire to stop camping on Dartmoor', but had 'concerns about the damage that wild camping can cause and, in particular, about the significant risk of fire associated with it'.
Richard Honey KC, for DNPA, said in his written submissions that the phrase 'on foot' means 'the access to the commons should be pedestrian and not vehicular'.
He also labelled the suggestion that erecting a tent could damage land and vegetation 'absurd'.
Lords Sales and Stephens ruled that the law would make 'no sense' if the right of recreation given to the public was 'limited in the manner contended for' by the Darwalls, and that the concept of 'open-air recreation' was 'wide'.
In a ruling backed by Lord Reed, Lady Rose and Lady Simler, they continued: 'It is not confined to recreation taken by means of walking or riding.'
They also said the law gives protection to landowners through 'public regulation of the use of the commons' such as bylaws, which they said are 'in practice likely to be more effective in protecting the land' than taking private legal action.
Following the Supreme Court's judgment, the Darwalls said: 'We are disappointed by the Supreme Court's judgment.
'Our aim from the outset was to protect and preserve Dartmoor, its flora and fauna.
'Landowners and farmers have always played a vital part in the conservation of Dartmoor.
'Hollowing out the role of landowners and farmers will not improve the vitality of the Dartmoor commons.'
Dr Kevin Bishop, chief executive of the DNPA, said the ruling allows the organisation to 'look forward and to work together for the good of Dartmoor'.
He said: 'The judgment reaffirms our long-held belief for the public's right to backpack camp on certain commons and, importantly, our role in regulating and managing that access.
'It is important to note that it is not a blanket right to camp wherever, or do whatever, you want.
'With the right comes a responsibility to make sure that you tread lightly and leave no trace.'
Nature minister Mary Creagh said: 'Wild camping under the stars is one of life's great pleasures, so I welcome today's ruling which upholds that right on Dartmoor's common land.
'This Government is passionate about bringing people closer to nature by creating nine national river walks and three new national forests.'
The Government has previously said it will create nine new national river walks, plant three new national forests and create a community right to buy to allow residents to create parks and green spaces.
It has also said it is completing the 2,700-mile King Charles III England Coast Path, which will be the longest waymarked and maintained coast walking route in the world, and continuing a £16.5 million fund to make landscapes more accessible.