Housing Act 1985

581 Acquisition of commons, open spaces, &c.

(1) In so far as a compulsory purchase order under section 290 (acquisition of land for clearance) authorises the purchase of land forming part of a common, open space or allotment, the order shall be subject to special parliamentary procedure except where it provides for giving in exchange for such land other land, not being less in area, certified by the Secretary of State to be equally advantageous to the persons, if any, entitled to commonable or other rights and to the public.

(2) Before giving a certificate the Secretary of State shall give public notice of the proposed exchange, shall afford opportunities to all persons interested to make representations and objections in relation to it and shall, if necessary, hold a local inquiry on the subject.

(3) An order which authorises such an exchange shall provide for—

(a) vesting the land given in exchange in the persons in whom the common, open space or allotment was vested, subject to the same rights, trusts and incidents as attached to the common, open space or allotment, and

(b) discharging the land acquired from all rights, trusts and incidents to which it was previously subject.

(3) In this section—

• “common” includes any land subject to be enclosed under the Inclosure Acts 1845 to 1882, and any town or village green;

• “open space” means any land laid out as a public garden or used for the purposes of public recreation, or land which is a disused burial ground;

• “allotment” means any allotment set out as a fuel or field garden allotment under an Inclosure Act.