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Staying Legal and Respecting Others Give anglers a wide berth, especially in the mornings and evening when fishing is most popular. In salmon rivers try not to trample on spawning gravels, particularly in autumn when eggs are buried. Remember that fishermen pay for their sport and are an important ally in ensuring rivers are kept clean and pollution free. You’ll see an increasing number of no-swimming signs in popular bathing places. Some of these are posted by fishing clubs keen to scare swimmers away. Others are posted by local councils, the Environment Agency and other management bodies who, since the 1984 Occupiers, Liability Act, are at danger of litigation should you have an accident in their waters and decide to sue. Corporate lawyers now advise management agencies that, unless permanent lifeguards are provided at every river and lake in the country, they must forbid all swimming and fence off all waters. Thankfully a 2003 ruling by the Law Lords looks set to reverse this crazy policy but you’ll still see plenty of no-swimming signs. You should understand that landowners are primarily nervous of your legal actions and these signs are their first line of defence. If you are asked to leave a private river by the river owner or their agent, do so politely. Despite misconception, trespassers cannot be prosecuted and the police can only be called in certain circumstances: when there are more than six vehicles on the land, when damage has been done or when abusive language has been used. If you have doubts as to who is confronting you it is permissible to ask for proof of identity or authority. If you are on a footpath you cannot be asked to move on. You can, however, be asked to leave the water, even if people have swum there for years. Wild Swimming and Access Law Douglas Caffryn We'll be adding some extracts from the Rev Douglas Caffryn's important study of river access law very soon... |
  
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