Another dispute over public access to footpaths on Harrow School grounds - Harrow Greens speak out

 

Residents on the north Brent borders with Harrow will not be surprised that another dispute has broken out with Harrow School wanting to close a footpath used by the public on grounds of anti-social behaviour. This is the latest enclosure move by the private school.

 

A discussion is underway on the website Next Door LINK. This is a quote from the initial post:

To summarise: there is a path going through one of Harrow School's many fields, just off the West St in Harrow. It leads through a road between two of the John Lyon's buildings and then comes up towards the Byron Hill Road. This path is taken every day, pretty much exclusively by the students of the local Roxeth Primary School and their parents. Not once did I see any of the children or their parents damage property or behave in a disruptive manner.

After speaking to some local people, it turns out this path had been in use by the public for over 25 years. It's the shortest way up the hill, and in a borough where most of the green spaces seem to be fenced off by the Harrow School, it's a pleasant walk, much more so than walking around on some of the extremely narrow paths up the hill.  However, Harrow School informed me that it's private property and in a couple weeks they will be installing a coded gate between the cricket field and the road passing through John Lyon's so that parents like me will no longer be able to walk through. 

Considering Harrow School (and John Lyon) both enjoy the financial benefits of being registered charities, it seems obscene to block people's right of way in such a manner, for reasons which on inspection appear both flimsy and petty.

Gareth Thomas MP has got involved and has organised a zoom meeting for Tuesday at noon LINK

Speaking on behalf of Harrow Green Party, Emma Wallace said:

It is concerning to hear of Harrow Schools latest plans to block a footpath that has been in use by the public for decades.  There appears to be little to no evidence of anti-social behaviour along this path, with pupils & parents of Roxeth Primary School using it on a daily basis to get to and from school. The path provides them with the shortest route up the hill and ensures children don't have to walk along the extremely narrow footpaths and roads that can be found going up the hill. This seems to be more about the school blocking a historic right of way for the local community use, rather than about safety concerns for their students. 

This situation is not without precedent - in 2017, footpath campaigners won a 14 year victory against Harrow school who had been trying to divert two historic, public rights of way that cross its playing fields LINK. 

 

In 2020, Harrow School appealed and won against Sadiq Khan's refusal of planning permission for a large sports hall to be built on Metropolitan Open Land. The Mayor had cited in 2018 that the proposed sports building was an "inappropriate development within Metropolitan Open Land and causes substantial harm to the openness of the Metropolitan Open Land by reason of its excessive footprint and its location."  LINK

 

And in 2021, John Lyon failed in its latest bid to remove planning restrictions to expand the school LINK. 

 

Harrow School must respect the rights of public access on the Hill, ensuring that the local community can continue to enjoy this historic part of Harrow, rather than just a small, privileged elite.

 A clear route out of the problem for a footpath that has been used for more than 20 years  is available to campaigners on the Open Spaces Society website HERE

Another battle between Harrow School and locals comes to a head next month

I have reported the battle between local people in Harrow and Harrow School over the school's plans to build on Metropolitan Open Land and spoil views of the Hill LINK but the school and locals are enaged in another battle, which started in 2003, and is due to come to a head next month.

There is to be three day Harrow School Footpaths Diversion Inquiry at Harrow Civic Centre from January 17th to January 19th 2016 by the Planning Inspectorate where evidence from the public and the school will be heard.

The conflict was reported by The Guardian in 2011 LINK and this extract summarises the issue quite well:

The extraordinary row, which threatens to end in court, stems from a multimillion-pound development of the school's facilities eight years ago when, next to a running track and an extended sports centre, two all-weather pitches were built. At the time, it was agreed by the Ramblers Association – erroneously, it now claims – that the pitches could be put on top of the old pathway as long as an alternative route was created.

But the alternative path, known as a permissive path because its continued existence is at the whim of the school, has now been deemed unacceptable by local walkers. Legally, because it does not follow the route of the old path, the right for people to walk on the new path could be summarily removed with six months' notice, it says.

And because the path circumvents the school's pitches, it has extended what was a gentle stroll across the grounds into a trek. "The permissive path probably pretty well doubles the distance of when you enter the playing fields to when you leave the playing fields," said Graham Wright, the Ramblers Association's local footpath secretary. "These people actually want to get to Harrow, they don't want to walk that extra bit and in some ways they are not having the beauty of Harrow Hill.

"The proper path has the views of St Mary's church and Harrow Hill as you walk, whereas when you do the permissive path you are looking towards Northwick Park hospital and Watford Road. It's not quite the same."

The Ramblers Association says that a small path between the two all-weather pitches should be opened up to the public to resurrect the old path. But the school, which charges up to £30,000 a year per pupil in fees, is not budging, prompting accusations of "arrogance" from some quarters.

The school's application, which includes allegations of dog excrement on the fields and the public wandering off the path can be found HERE