My garden borders a playing field. I asked the council whether I could put a gate in the fence so that I could walk straight out on to the field. They agreed, and I paid £100 for a gate. But they now tell me that we will have to pay the same again to have a solicitor draw up a licence so that we can open up the fence. Why this should be necessary?
Without a legal document giving you permission to open up the fence you, and people who come to live in your house after you, could eventually claim a right of way over the playing field and even incorporate it in your title deeds. This could be a problem for the council if, for example, it wanted to build on the land at some stage.