ScotWays

Scottish Rights of Way & Access Society

Safeguarding access to the Scottish countryside for all

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Home FAQ

Scotland has new and forward-looking legislation for public access to land, set out in Part 1 of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003, which came into force in February 2005. This legislation gives the public wide-ranging statutory rights of access to land and inland water throughout Scotland. It builds on the Scottish traditions of access, on the network of long-established rights of way, and on other existing rights. The result is a modern approach to access which is among the best in Europe.

Frequently asked questions on access law are set under two headings: dealing with statutory access rights under the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003, and rights of way.

There is also a separate section dealing with questions about Scotways as an organisation.

Welcome to the ScotWays website.

ScotWays is a charity, established in 1845.

We work to protect and develop access to the Scottish countryside
for all.

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Heritage Paths Project

This exciting project aims to identify, research and record Scotland’s old paths and roads. Our staff and volunteers have already discovered hundreds of old ways from Roman Roads to Pilgrim Paths.

The project is currently funded by Scottish Natural Heritage, the Brown Forbes Memorial Trust and ScotWays to focus on and around the Campsie Fells and Gargunnock Hills.

To find out more, visit the website here.