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beach law

Posted: Sun May 25, 2008 1:50 pm
by kev1jw
hi does anyone know what the law is on the beach? do i need permission from someone? :?:

Re: beach law

Posted: Sun May 25, 2008 4:03 pm
by Big Al2
send an email to your local councils helpdesk or phone they will probably tell you that there is no problem detecting on a beach or foreshore as long as you fill your holes in

Re: beach law

Posted: Sun May 25, 2008 7:32 pm
by metal mark
All beach's belong to the Crown estates between mean high tide and mean low tide. Above mean high tide the dunes/land belong to the land owner and below mean low tide I believe the commissioner of wreaks. The Crown estates now have a £20/year permit scheme, however they have no way of policeing this or collecting the fees unless you write in and volunteer the money ! Some beaches are leased by the Crown estates to land owners/councils or organisations such as the RSPB. These people may ban metlin via a notice board such as is the case around much of the north Norfolk coast so as not to disturb the nesting birds (even in winter !!! ). I spend a lot of time on the beaches of the east coast and as yet I have not met any body who has volunteered the permit fee.

Cheers MM

Re: beach law

Posted: Sun May 25, 2008 7:53 pm
by kev1jw
thats very interesting and a great help. cheers mate

Re: beach law

Posted: Mon May 26, 2008 7:11 am
by Old Git John
Metal Mark, your reply was very interesting, but I have one question. Does that £20 cover all beaches within their durasdiction, or is it per beach ?

Re: beach law

Posted: Mon May 26, 2008 7:22 am
by metal mark
Good point that John, I had wondered that myself. The wording of the information I have seen is very vague, it did not say wheather it was per beach, per visit or per year for all beaches or just one. Oh and you cant dig any lower than 3 inches into the sand !!! Well every kid with a bucket and spade is a criminal then :evil:

Well thats all cleared up then :roll:

Re: beach law

Posted: Mon May 26, 2008 7:33 am
by metal mark
The relavent section of the Crown estates web site says :-

"Those wishing to obtain a permit for England, Wales or Northern Ireland should submit a covering letter or email with a map or co-ordinates clearly indicating the intended areas of search, to:"

Which suggests that the permit would be for a specific beach for the year, but it is not very clear. The information is at

http://www.thecrownestate.co.uk/metal_detecting

Re: beach law

Posted: Mon May 26, 2008 7:53 am
by Deetektor
What it really boils down to, is that it's ok to detect on a beach, unless it's marked private, or someone tells you not to.
It's mostly down to common sense.

Does a child need a licence to dig holes, and build sand castles ?

Re: beach law

Posted: Mon May 26, 2008 9:12 am
by metal mark
Exactly Deetector, I will walk the beaches I normally walk untill someone in a peaked cap starts asking questions.