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Common Land
There are around 550,000 hectares of registered common land in England and Wales – 4% of the total land area in England and Wales. The Commons Act 2006 aims to protect these areas of Common Land, in a sustainable manner delivering benefits for farming, public access and biodiversity.
Latest news
- February 2010: The national implementation of Part 1 of the Commons Act 2006 has been postponed in order to allow more time to learn fully all the lessons of the pilot implementation
- January 2010: New guidance notes have been published on the creation of the commons registers in the late 1960s and on Defra's response to some of the questions we frequently receive concerning the protection and management of town and village greens
- November 2009: Consultation on town and village greens registration system (section 15 of the Commons Act 2006) to be published in Spring 2010
In this section:
- What is Common Land?
Definition of common land and key facts and figures relating to common land. - What is the Commons Act?
Learn more about the Commons Act, what it aims to do, why we need a Commons Act. - How is the Commons Act implemented?
Read the latest implementation update, or find out which commencement orders have been made and which provisions of the Act have been commenced to date. - How is Common Land managed?
Find out how common land is managed, from byelaws to good practice guides. - Management Projects
Discover more about management projects that are looking into innovative ways of managing commons.
- What are Statutory Commons Councils?
Find out what Statutory Commons Councils are, what benefit they may add to Common Land management, and how they might be established. - Town and Village Greens
Discover more about Town and Village Greens, what they are, pilot implementation areas, and read the guidance on registering a new green. - Updating the commons registers: pilot
Learn about the Commons registration pilot implementation of part 1 of the Commons Act 2006
- Commons Registration Authority Functions
Learn about the Commons registration policy, commons registration officers updates, registration of new town and village greens. - Protection and consents
Find out how common land is protected, when consent is needed, decisions relating to consents and a consent database. - Court judgements
Court judgements of general interest in relation to common land and town and village greens. - National Common Land Stakeholder Group
This group advise on matters relating to the management of commons and particularly on the implementation of the Commons Act - Commons Acts 1876 and 1899
Learn about the relevant sections of these Common Acts - Research projects on Common Land
Find out about new and recently completed research projects that Defra use to improve our evidence base for policy decision making. - Vehicular access over common land
Learn more about the repeal of section 68 of the CROW act, and what it means for vehicular access over common land.
- Contact us
Details of how to contact us
Page last modified: 08 February 2010
Page published: 23 October 2008