September 12 2013.

The people of Newhaven are a small step closer to having the right to use their sandy beach today, as East Sussex County Council has now formally made an Order creating a right of way to it.

Newhaven Town Council applied for the new right of way some time ago in connection with the on-going process to have the beach registered as a Village Green.

The current East Sussex Definitive Map, (which is the legal register of all rights of way), includes a right of way which is shown as a thin line passing along the promenade behind the sandy beach from the end of Fort Road to the shingle beach on the west of the harbour arm. The first ever Definitive Map, produced in the 1950s, showed the same right of way as a much thicker line, covering the full width of the promenade, but for some unknown reason the width of the right of way seems to have got lost over time.
 
The new Order modifies the Definitive Map and accompanying Statement by restoring the right of way to the full width of the promenade and by adding a public footpath connecting the promenade and the steps to the sandy beach and over the steps to the beach.

The Town Mayor of Newhaven, Councillor Julie Carr, said: "I am absolutely delighted at this latest victory for common sense and for the rights of the people of Newhaven. Once again, I would like to invite Newhaven Port and Properties to sit down and talk to the Town Council so that we can work together to find the best way to get the beach open for local people as soon as possible and in a way that is both safe and doesn't get in the way of port operations."
 
The Town Council is still waiting for a decision from the Supreme Court as to whether it will give the beach's owners, Newhaven Port and Properties, permission to appeal against the Appeal Court's decision to allow the beach to be registered as a Village Green.

The public notice advertising the Order will be published tomorrow, the 13th of September. There is a 42 day objection/representation period until the 28th of October 2013, after which the Order will either be confirmed as made, or referred to the Secretary of State for a determination to be made.

A copy of the Order and Public Notice is available for the public to view at the Town Council offices, 18 Fort Road, Newhaven.