Definitive map
Definitive maps are a legal record of the public’s right of way. Under schemes of delegation with North Yorkshire County Council and Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council the National Park Authority is responsible for the definitive map covering the area of the North York Moors National Park. If a way is shown on the map, then that is conclusive evidence of public rights along the way unless there has been a legally authorised change.
Definitive maps are a major element in providing evidence of the existence of public rights of way, but they do not show the full picture. There may be additional public rights over land which have not yet been recorded on the map, or there may be rights which have been incorrectly recorded. For example, if a way is shown on the definitive map as a bridleway it is conclusive evidence that there are rights of passage on foot, on horseback and bicycle but there may also be vehicular rights which have not been recorded on the map.
Maps can be amended by a Definitive Map Modification Order if evidence of missing rights of way is discovered, or to correct errors in previously recorded information.
For more information about Modification Orders, you can download a booklet from the Natural England website.
If you are aware of a public right that is not recorded on the definitive map, or you would like to check the recorded status of a way, please contact the Rights of Way Officers.
North York Moors Definitive Map
The whole of this National Park lies within the boundary of the County of the former North Riding of Yorkshire and is covered by a definitive map and statement for the Eastern part of the North Riding of Yorkshire published in 1965.
After the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act, the North Riding County Council set about drawing up this map and, following the regulations of the time, sought from each Parish Council a detailed plan showing the routes of public rights of way together with a written schedule for each one. This job involved considerable effort on behalf of the rural communities and was generally carried out by local people with an interest in their own paths; sometimes members of the Youth Hostels Association carried out the survey, and in Harwood Dale, individual farmers surveyed the paths on their own land. Surveys were carried out between 1951 and 1953 and the quality of the map and schedules subsequently returned to County Hall was generally excellent, but inevitably some were more accurate than others.
The County Council amalgamated all the parish returns into Draft maps at a smaller scale which were available for public inspection at local police houses in June 1956. 220 objections were raised regarding the 1200 footpaths and bridleways. These were heard by members of the County Council who held 86 local inquiries. Most modifications, deletions and additions were resolved then, but nine appeals were heard by the Minister of Housing and Local Government before the Provisional maps were published in 1957. This concluded the process for the Western Part of the County, but publication of the Eastern map was further delayed until may 1965 by two appeals to Quarter-Sessions and one to the High Court.
Cleveland County Council, established at local government re-organisation in 1974, produced a consolidated map (the definitive map brought up to date by including the affects of all relevant orders such as diversions and creation agreements) for its area which includes three parishes along the northern edge of the National Park. At a scale of 1:10,000 this was more accurate than the old 1:25,000 definitive map from the North Riding, and for the first time the written path details on the parish schedules were included in the 'Statement'. Cleveland revised its Definitive map in 1994.
During the 1980s the National Park Committee, as part of North Yorkshire County Council, embarked upon the preparation of a 1:10,000 scale Consolidated Map for the remainder of the National Park and made omnibus legal event orders to facilitate the process. This work was continued by the National Park Authority and all six Roads Used As Public Paths reclassified.
Consolidated maps for the whole of the National Park were published on 1 April 1998 at a scale of 1:10,000, with village conservation areas being covered at 1:2500. Annual omnibus legal event orders have been made to keep the record up to date, and the Authority is working to complete the record by adding more of the known rights of way over the coming years.
