Rights Of Way
Ramblers UK are passionate about Rights Of Way (ROW) and are the only walking charity who actively support the protection and maintenance of these precious routes. Indeed there are many members of Ramblers UK who rarely walk with the Groups but maintain their membership to support the work carried out to safeguard these routes. In England and Wales specified routes and certain mapped open access areas are protected by law for walkers and riders to use, dogs are recognised as a ‘usual accompaniment’ for walkers and they too have protection and rights in law but have to be under the close control of their owner at all times. In Scotland the laws are different with a greater emphasis on the right to roam.
In Ceredigion we are fortunate in having an active and enthusiastic team under the Coast and Countryside Section of Ceredigion County Council (CCC) who manage 2500km of Public paths with roughly 60% of all paths open. These paths do have their classification and that does affect the level of maintenance that is carried out on them with the highest classification, Category 1 being trails e.g. the Cambrian Way and the Wales Coast Path. The lowest category is Category Zero and these can be found in more remote, rural locations and often not used on a regular basis. Most footpaths come between these categories often classed as Category 2 with footpaths near or leading to a centre of population e.g. a town or village having greater priority. In Ceredigion we have an active Working Party which makes a tremendous and valued contribution to our network of paths, these are Volunteers who work closely with the three Rangers that are employed by CCC on its public rights of way.
Over the last few years the Working Party in conjunction with CCC have replaced many stiles in the Aberystwyth area with self-closing gates, many have been provided by Aberystwyth Ramblers using money from the sale of the Aberystwyth Ramblers Walking Book:- ‘Aberystwyth Walks - 21 Half Day Walks in the Aberystwyth Area’ produced and published by Aberystwyth Ramblers. Path improvements have also been carried out by the Working Party and footbridges are often replaced when necessary. However, there are still stiles and issues out there that may require attention. CCC do have an ‘Adopt a Path Scheme’ when individuals are encouraged to take an active role in a particular path, observe it and clear low levels of vegetation which can be problematical during summer months. If you are interested in taking part in this scheme then you will need to contact CCC.
Identifying a Right of Way
If you have concerns about a particular footpath it is best to contact the Council and this can be done in one of two ways. However, it is helpful for you to first identify the path, there is an Interactive Map of Public Rights of Way available on the CCC website. This will give you the location of the footpath and its official number, if you are unable to find its official number then you will need to use a Grid Reference. In order to find the Interactive Map on accessing the Website scroll down to ‘Coast and Countryside’ and click on to it. Then scroll down to where Interactive Map is underlined in red, click on to that and the Interactive map will appear giving you the routes and numbers of the footpaths which will enable relevant paths to be noted and their number and codes.
How to report an issue with Footpaths to CCC
If you live in Ceredigion then you can set up a ‘My Account’ with CCC which can be used to gain access to information or make contact with CCC on multiple issues. To do this you will need to register with CCC through their website. If you do this then any issues you may have with paths can be reported using that facility. However, if you do not have a ‘My Account’ with CCC you can still report an issue with footpaths on line using their Clic e-mail- that is
You can also report by accessing the CCC website, click on Coast and Country, then click on Public Rights of Way then click on Path Management. That will inform you of the relevant Ranger for your area as well as allowing access to the Online Interactive Map and Clic. After you have contacted CCC I would be grateful if you could please inform me of any problems you have encountered and the action you have taken. I can then follow up any response through regular Teams Meeting I have with the Rights of Way team at CCC. I can be contacted on
Dwynwen Belsey, Footpaths Officer, Aberystwyth Ramblers