CAN A BEACH BECOME A VILLAGE GREEN?

As their coastal road trip continues, Richard and Lizzie turn their attention to village greens.

Despite the name, a village green does not need to be in a village, nor does it need to be green. Quarries, industrial land, playing fields and even beaches have all been the subject of village green claims.

In this episode of ‘When Land Meets the Sea’, Richard explores the West Beach in Newhaven and the Supreme Court decision in R (Newhaven Port & Properties Ltd) v East Sussex County Council [2015].

The case raised a fundamental question: can land used by local people for recreation become a village green, even when it forms part of a working commercial port?