Popular Cuckoo Trail’s future management arrangements to be agreed

Jointly owned by the two authorities, in previous years, East Sussex County Council has taken sole responsibility for maintaining the trail, with Wealden paying £25,000 a year towards this cost.

But the councils are in the process of signing off on a new management agreement which sees each authority take responsibility for maintaining only what it owns.

Wealden owns around 80 per cent of the 14-mile trail, with the remaining 20 per cent owned by the county council.

The county council says these changes will free up its resources for the maintenance of around 2,000 miles of Public Rights of Way in East Sussex.

Despite this, East Sussex County Council would continue to handle all public enquiries related to the trail, with Wealden District Council paying the upper tier authority £10,000 a year for this service.

The principles of the agreement are set to be discussed by Cllr Claire Dowling, the county council’s lead member for transport and environment, at a meeting next Monday (July 20).

According to the councils the changes were initially to be discussed earlier this year, but were deferred in light of the coronavirus crisis.  However, both councils have been operating to the principles of the agreement since 1 April 2020.

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