The Pike Stone: From Waste to Common Land

The Pike Stone marks the boundary between the common land of Westerdale and the “wasteland” of Baysdale Moor. At first glance there is little difference: both are heather moor, both are Open Access. Yet the distinction matters, and the Open Spaces Society is seeking to have Baysdale Moor registered as common land¹Notice of an application to register waste land of the manor as common land. Application Reference Number: CA13 037. Baysdale Moor, Westerdale (CL282). https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2025-08/Notice_of_Application_CA13_037.pdf.

Common land is privately owned but carries ancient, legally protected rights for others to use it, such as grazing or turbary. It also guarantees public access and resists development. Wasteland, by contrast, carries no such protections; it is simply private land, with access and use at the owner’s discretion.

The turning point was the Commons Registration Act of 1965, which created an official register of land with these rights. Registration is the safeguard: it turns open ground from potential development land into a protected community space.

The application for Baysdale Moor may not be incidental. Discussing this today with a local farmer, I learnt that Ingleby Moor, traditionally managed with Baysdale, is up for sale. The Open Spaces Society, Britain’s oldest national conservation body, has invested significant expertise in this case. They would surely not do so without cause.

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  Notice of an application to register waste land of the manor as common land. Application Reference Number: CA13 037. Baysdale Moor, Westerdale (CL282). https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2025-08/Notice_of_Application_CA13_037.pdf