Dear Roamers,
It’s been quite a week.
The right to wild camp on Dartmoor has been back in court - for the third time in two years - and we’ve been on the moors and on the streets: Outside court in London on Tuesday, following a 650-strong rally at Hound Tor on Dartmoor last Sunday.
Millionaire landowner Alexander Darwall brought the case in late 2021 - erasing the legal right to camp in early 2022, later returned through the court of appeal. This latest Supreme Court hearing is now the end of the road for the domestic courts – but it underscores the significance of our problem - access laws in England are insufficient, and in the case of Dartmoor they are weak: subject to challenge by those with the wealth and power do so.
On Sunday we gathered on Hound Tor with 650 supporters between the rain showers. We were joined by the inimitable and long-time campaigner for access rights, Kate Ashbrook from the Open Spaces Society (key interveners in the Supreme Court case), and Eben Muse from the British Mountaineering Council. You can get a sense of the rally and the speeches here. Then, on Tuesday we rallied outside court with The Stars Are For Everyone, joined by friends: Robert Macfarlane, Caroline Lucas, Rose O’Neill, Emma Linford, Caroline Voaden MP, Phil Brickell MP, and our very own Guy Shrubsole and poet in non-residence Daniel Grimston. Keeping folk energy high were MAYDAY Morris, Kimwei and the band, and Holly Ebony whose music video for her song ‘Follow Your Feet’ was released on the same day.
Meanwhile, inside the courtroom, a more surreal discussion was taking place, as Darwall’s lawyers argued that unauthorised picnicking, or even just… sitting… on the moor should, like wild camping, be understood as a potential form of trespass. This is the ultimate logic of the wild camping ban: that any activity in the countryside should be subject to the arbitrary discretion of the powerful.
The sheer absurdity of this argument underscores a very real threat which has been part of the fabric of England for centuries - whether picnicking, camping, walking, foraging, swimming - without legal rights underpinned by national legislation, looming over us will always be the spectre of those attempting to deny and exclude.
Following the hearing, a supporter spotted Mr Darwall outside court, he posed some of the questions to which we’d all like to hear the answers…
Unfortunately, Mr Darwall was less than eager to oblige.
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Wild camping on Dartmoor is a vestige, a slither, a crumb of access - just 0.2% of England on which we have a right to sleep under the stars. Alongside this, we have an uncontested legal right to swim in just 3% of our rivers; access to just 8% of land in England, the majority of which is in the uplands.
This was never just about wild camping. The arguments of Darwall's lawyers lay bare a history of exclusion and exception which has resulted in this dearth of access across England.
That's why we're calling on the government to pass new access legislation to protect and extend our access to the countryside - so that we can camp, picnic, swim, walk and be in the countryside with the knowledge that we have a right to belong there.
That's why we're saying: Win or lose, we need a Right to Roam Act!
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What now?
This is a pivotal moment for the campaign. The Dartmoor wild camping case is important - not only for what we stand to lose in this corner of England, but for what this means for access across the whole country. This moment opens an opportunity to transform the realities of access to nature for millions of people. While we await the verdict, we will continue to advocate, amplify and campaign for wider rights.
Here’s how you can help:
Starry Starry Fortnight (October 25th - November 10th):
Dartmoor wild camping rights are a quirk resulting from local bylaws, but we believe that the right to sleep under the stars should be uncontested for everyone, everywhere. Why wait for a change to the law? Take the opportunity during the shortening days to get out and experience the night sky near you this coming half term. If camping isn’t your bag, why not try out a spot of star gazing, or simply (and, these days - radically) picnic under the stars. Pack the hot chocolate, binoculars, and blankets and reclaim the night sky.
Write to your MP:
Take inspiration from the stars to write to your MP. Where do they stand on access legislation? What do they think about the Dartmoor wild camping case? Do they agree that win or lose we need new access legislation? Let us know what they say.
Find our template MP email here and look up your MP and how much access land is in your constituency on our spreadsheet.
Donate to the campaign:
As a campaign we rely on our supporters to keep us afloat. We’re a nimble, small team. We make good use of the resources we have but to keep the campaign going as we push for the access legislation we all deserve, we need your support.
We’d rather be funded by hundreds of supporters donating a few quid a month, than by a corporate sponsor signing a fat contract. Please consider becoming a regular supporter as we work for access reform in England.
Lewis,
On behalf of the Right to Roam team
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