Pippa Middleton and her husband James Matthews have won a planning battle to prevent a footpath through their £15 million Berkshire estate from being designated a public right of way.
The route crosses Barton Court, the Grade I-listed property bought by the couple in 2022. Ms Middleton, the sister of the Princess of Wales, had argued that allowing public access could create security risks for her family.
Mill Lane is used by residents of nearby Kintbury as a safer route to the village. Locals said the alternative, Station Road, is narrow, busy, lacks a pavement and has blind bends.
Planning inspector overturns public right of way designation
A total of 35 residents, supported by the Ramblers’ Association, asked West Berkshire Council to recognise the track as a public right of way.
But Mr Matthews argued that the path had not been used freely by the public for the 20 years required under the law. The government-appointed planning inspector, Ken Taylor, has now overturned its designation.
Mr Taylor said the couple could not rely on privacy and security concerns to justify the decision. However, he found there was insufficient evidence that walkers had used the route continuously for two decades.
He noted that a ‘Barton Court Private Road’ sign had been displayed on the path since at least 1983, while a later sign described it as the Barton Court Estate and a ‘No Through Road’.
The inspector concluded that the relatively low level of use did not show that members of the public had been asserting a continuous right to use the drive as a footpath.
The couple installed electric gates and signs stating ‘Private: No Public Access’ and ‘No Trespassing’ at both ends of the route after buying the estate.
In a written submission, their barrister, Paul Wilmshurst, said granting public right of way status would create “very real practical [and] privacy difficulties and security issues”.
Mr Matthews told the inquiry that his family’s public profile meant they required a higher level of security than would otherwise be necessary. He said he had arranged for an electric security gate to be installed before they moved into Barton Court.
The couple were supported by Lady Victoria Conran, who had lived at the estate with her late husband, Habitat founder Sir Terence Conran. She told the inquiry that in 30 years at Barton Court she had seen only one person using the driveway who should not have been there and had never observed organised groups of ramblers using it.
Neil Pike, the local footpath secretary for ramblers, said Mill Lane was “intrinsic” to life in Kintbury. He told the inquiry that Station Road was the only alternative if the route were removed from public use.
“I do not understand why the present owners are trying to close it when it has been used by the walking public for decades,” he said.
A spokesman for Ms Middleton and Mr Matthews said: “We are grateful for the careful consideration given to the facts and appreciate the time invested by all parties.”
Tony Vickers, a local Liberal Democrat councillor, said he was “surprised and very disappointed” by the inspector’s decision, adding that he had not seen a relevant argument put forward by those supporting Mr Matthews.
