Rallies will go ahead this weekend and early next week to coincide with the upcoming court case that will determine the future of wild camping on Dartmoor, with the UK's Supreme Court set to make its final judgment on on Tuesday.
After two years of legal wrangling over public access rights in the UK National Park, Tuesday's case will decide for once and for all whether the public has any right to pitch a tent on Dartmoor, the last remaining area for wild camping in England.
This right was first contested in 2022 by landowner Alexander Darwall, a hedge fund manager, who with his wife Diana owns the 4,000-acre Blachford Estate in the south of the popular park. Unlike US National Parks, which are on public land, Britain's National Parks are largely privately owned.
Among those campaigning to retain camping rights is the protest group The Stars Are for Everyone. Speaking on behalf of TSAFE, Frankie Gould stresses the importance of Tuesday's hearing for those who want to enjoy England's wild spaces overnight.
“If Darwall wins his case, there will be no further opportunity for appeal. Wild camping rights will cease to exist in England, and the continued ability for individuals and groups to sleep under Dartmoor’s stars will be lost.
But there’s a bigger issue at stake here. The fact that a landowner is able to challenge our generations-deep right to sleep under the stars on Dartmoor points to the fragility and inadequacy of our current access system.”
In January 2023, Chancellor of the High Court Julian Flaux ruled that, despite decades of use, campers had no legal right to wild camp on Darwall's land without his permission. Although the Supreme Court overturned the camping ban in July 2023 following an appeal launched by The Open Spaces Society (OSS), Britain's oldest national conservation body, Darwall's lawyers convinced the court to agree to appeal the appeal, and that's the case that's set to be decided next week.
Lewis Winks of Right to Roam says that Darwall's decision to try to keep campers off his land – which he uses for holiday rentals, deer stalking and pheasant shooting – is just one of many examples of blockages to countryside access taking place across the country.
"We’ve seen enough to know that it’s just a matter of time before another Darwall comes along to reduce, exclude and deny access to the places we love."
Should Darwall win, the National Park Authority will be liable for approximately £400,000 ($524,000) in court costs arising from the three hearings. A fundraising effort to help support the National Park to continue to fight in court has already reached £120,000, with over 4,000 individual donations.
Two rallies will take place in the coming days – one at Hound Tor on Sunday, October 6 at 3pm, and a second outside the Supreme Court in London on Tuesday, October 8 at 11am.
"The Dartmoor Preservation Association has been campaigning to keep Dartmoor wild and free for all for 140 years," says Tom Usher, CEO of Dartmoor Preservation Association.
"We are committed to supporting the National Park in their legal defence of backpack camping; thousands and thousands of people know and love the freedom it brings."
