Until 2020 some farmers have offered and been paid for providing permissive access over their land under previous Stewardship Schemes. This payment helped cover mowing the grass in summer, paying for public liability insurance and other costs. Sadly new Stewardship Schemes no longer pay farmers for providing permissive access. Many farmers have therefore stopped providing access and have ploughed up their grass margins whilst others have sought payments from their Parish Councils to continue offering access.
Hardingham Farms provided 8.8 miles of permissive access for over 20 years but it legally came to an end on 31 December 2019. However Hardingham Farms has decided to maintain permissive access without seeking payment from Parish Councils as our gift to the Community, on the strict understanding that all dogs are kept on leads, access is taken only during daylight hours, gateways are not blocked by cars and all litter is taken home. Most of the permissive access passes small woods and we do not wish for the wildlife to be disturbed.
The decision taken by Hardingham Farms to provide permissive access will be reviewed regularly, and could be amended/revoked at any time.
