Cley Hill Path History .

2003.

Wiveton Parish Council has become increasingly concerned in recent years with the numbers of people slipping and sliding their way up or down the verge beside the coast road on Blakeney / Cley Hill.

With very limited funds and precious little space for a footway on either side of the road finding a way forward has not been easy. The County Council was willing to put in a pavement type footway but the projected cost [in excess of £20,000.00] and the loss of the hedge and a large number of trees made that option unacceptable both to the District Council and us.

Salvation came in the form of Derek and Caroline Newman who offered us the option of incorporating a considerable length of the path behind the hedge on their property, thus giving us a way forward that not only preserved the environment, but had the added benefit if keeping people well away from traffic on what must be one of the most dangerous stretches of the Coast Road.

With a population of not much more than a hundred Wiveton’s precept is small and in undertaking even this modest project we knew our resources would be stretched beyond their limit. Although entirely in the Parish of Wiveton the principal benefit of the path is to walkers making their way to or from Blakeney and Cley, consequently Cley Parish Council have made a generous contribution to the cost and both Blakeney Parish Council and North Norfolk District Council have promised contributions.

However, even with this assistance it has been a ‘do it yourself your self’ approach that made it possible, villagers and parish councilors doing the work and keeping the funds we had to purchase the materials. Although the amount of money needed [£1,500.00] was considerable, set against our precept, it was still only a small fraction of the £20.000.00 plus NCC would so willingly have spent. Perhaps we should call it the path to lower Council Tax!

Something to remember however, for everyone who might use this path. It was made possible by the generosity of the landowners and it runs over their land, it therefore behoves us all to use it with care for their property and respect for their privacy

Wiveton Parish Council