Public rights of way and grazing livestock

Under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (CROW), members of the public have a legal right to access certain types of land on foot. This includes mountains, moorland, heath, down and registered common land. What counts as public access land? This includes fields or enclosures where access is granted by law, such as public footpaths or bridleways, or permission from the landowner. It does not include land accessed informally without permission. 

 

Remember Your Legal Responsibilities 

Obstructing a Public Right of Way (PROW) is a criminal offence under Section 137 of the Highways Act 1980 and may lead to fines, imprisonment or both. As a landowner, you must do the following: 

• Keep paths clear of obstructions like vegetation, equipment or crops. Stiles and gates must be safe and well maintained. 

• If a path is ploughed or planted over, it must be reinstated within 14 days. 

• Landowners may be liable for injuries caused by damaged stiles or blocked paths. 

• Unclear routes can cause walkers to leave the designated path, especially on cultivated ground, so keeping it visible to users is essential and protects your land, particularly newly sown crops. 

• Aim for a 1-metre safe margin on either side of the path to keep walkers on track. 

For more detailed information on these responsibilities, visit our website.  

Where a path runs diagonally across a field, diverting it to the edge may be an option, although official diversions require approval and can be time-consuming. We recommend seeking legal advice before applying to change a PROW. 

 

Managing livestock near PROW 

Incidents involving livestock often occur where dogs are present or when animals have their young with them, such as cows and calves. These situations can make animals more aggressive and increase the risk of injury. 

What to Do: 

• Install a temporary fence along the PROW, where practical, to keep people and animals apart. 

• Check livestock daily, particularly where animals are grazing in fields with public access. This ideally needs to be recorded so you have documentary evidence. 

• Inspect fences, gates, stiles and signs regularly to ensure they are in good working order. 

• Use clear signs at the entrance to fields (gates, stiles etc.) where a bull or cows with calves are grazing. 

• Order a free Cornish Mutual ‘dogs on lead’ sign by emailing marketing@cornishmutual.co.uk or call 01872 277151. 

• Try to position handling and feeding areas well away from paths to reduce the chance of animals congregating near walkers. 

What to Avoid: 

Bulls of recognised dairy breeds (such as Ayrshire, Friesian, Holstein, Dairy Shorthorn, Guernsey, Jersey and Kerry) are banned from being kept in fields crossed by a public right of way. In addition to this, you should also avoid grazing aggressive or unpredictable animals, including bulls of non-dairy breeds, in publicly accessible fields. If you have any concerns about an animal’s behaviour, move it to another location. 

While appropriate warning signs are encouraged, they should also be removed when animals are no longer in a field. Leaving them up can be treated as an obstruction of public access rights. 

 

Practical steps to reduce risk 

If livestock are grazing near a public right of way, consider fencing both sides of the path. This is legal as long as the correct path width and position is maintained with visible boundaries. If you are unsure, speak to your local authority before putting up fencing. 

Use signs to warn walkers of livestock or natural hazards like steep drops or deep water but avoid wording that could wrongly imply access is restricted.  

 

Further information  

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) guidance on “Cattle and Public Access in England and Wales” is available on the HSE website.