Common land is land, usually in private ownership, that now or in the past has had common rights over it. Common land is generally open, unfenced and remote - particularly in the upland areas of England and Wales
Town and village greens share a similar history to common land. They are defined separately for the purposes of the Commons Registration Act 1965. Village greens are usually areas of land within defined settlements or geographical areas which local inhabitants can go onto for the exercise of lawful sports and pastimes. Typically these might include organised or ad-hoc games, picnics, fetes, dog-walking and other similar activities. Whilst land forming town or village greens may be privately owned, many greens are owned and maintained by local parish or town councils.
We keep a register of commons and towns or village greens. You can apply for an official search of the register by ticking Enquiry 22 on Form CON29(O) Optional Enquiries which relates to Common Land & Village Greens. The CLVG Form CR21 is now obsolete
Usually a solicitor will fill this in and submit it to us although you can do this yourself. You can also make an application using NLIS (follow the link from this page)
The fee for Con 29 O Question 22 is £14.00. However, PLEASE NOTE - if you submit a Con 29(O) form on its own, ie without a Con 29(R) form, then an additional administration fee of £6.00 is required in addition to the question(s) fee required.
The register is a legal register open for inspection by any member of the public during reasonable office hours if you make an appointment. There is no charge for this service.
If you would like more information or you would like to make an appointment to view, please ring us on 0113 247 4385