Campaigners begin application to register South Bank skateboarding site as village green

The Guardian reported that lawyers acting on behalf of the Long Live Southbank campaign had lodged the application with Lambeth Council. If successful, a TVG application could, in theory, prevent the planned alternation and extension of the Southbank Centre, which stands over the 'Undercroft' skateboarding site.

On its website, the Long Live Southbank campaign called on supporters to write to Lambeth Council and object to the proposals.

"The Southbank Centre's plans for a new festival wing means that the famous skate spot, which has existed as a hub for skaters, BMXers and artists for some 40 years, will be relocated," they said. "We believe it should stay."

Property law expert David Meecham of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, said that the case should act as a "wake up call to all landowners", who may not otherwise be aware that the TVG regime could apply to sites that would not traditionally be described as village greens.

The TVG regime allows land to be registered if it has been used "as of right" for recreational purposes for the preceding 20 years. Once registered, local residents have a recognised right to use that land for recreational purposes. It is an offence for a landowner to wilfully do anything on a TVG that will injure the land or interrupt the public's use or enjoyment of it.

In order for the regime to apply, the land must have been used "as of right". Use "as of right", which is sometimes also described as being "as if of right", means that users have used the land openly, without force, and without having been given permission to do so.

Changes to the regime, introduced as part of the Growth and Infrastructure Act, now prevent TVG applications from being lodged where an application for planning permission has been made or granted, or when land has been allocated for development by the local authority as part of a Local or Neighbourhood Plan. Future changes will allow landowners to deposit statements and maps with commons registration authorities, identifying land to which the public has access, to stop the TVG clock ticking and protect any development potential; however, the Government has not yet confirmed when this provision will come into force.

Property law expert David Meecham said that the landowner may wish that the Government had implemented proposals to introduce a 'character test' for land subject to a TVG application alongside these amendments. However, these proposals were dropped following strong opposition from the Open Spaces Society and other groups, on the grounds that this test would introduce subjectivity and unreasonable uncertainty to the regime.

"Consequently, there may be little scope for arguing that the physical characteristics of the venue render it ineligible for registration as a TVG," Meecham said. "However, there may be scope for argument that the application for registration should be rejected if the landowner can show that the land has already been allocated for development in a Local or Neighbourhood Plan."