Latest News
If you require high-resolution images suitable for publication please visit our Image Downloads Page.
[ view archived news (2) ]Press Releases
Shooting on the Moor
Monday 16 November 2009
1. Ilkley Moor was bought 'as an amenity for the people of Ilkley'. It is an urban common where the public have the right of fresh air and exercise. It follows that public enjoyment of the Moor should always have a priority over the requirements of the shoot.
2. Ilkley Moor is public property. When rights (such as shooting rights) on public property are leased, it follows that the public have an interest in knowing the terms of the lease and this should be published.
3. The public have a right to know when and where shooting is taking place so that they may avoid such areas if the wish to do so, thus the dates, times and places of all shoots on Ilkley Moor should be published in advance in the Ilkley Gazette and notices should be displayed at entry points to the Moor on the days when shooting is taking place.
4. Members of the public are always likely to be frightened when meeting anyone on the Moor who is carrying a gun. It follows that guns on a shoot, and the gamekeepers for the shoot should be instructed that the public (under point 1 above) always have priority on the Moor and must be approached in a calm and courteous manner. To ensure that this is so, the Friends of Ilkley Moor should offer to have observers available to observe shoots.
5. The distress caused by the appearance of a lone man with a gun is likely to be greater than the appearance of a large shooting party (and if point 3 is accepted the public will have prior warning of a shooting party), thus it follows that any gamekeeper for the shoot should not normally openly carry a gun on Ilkley Moor and should only be using one under defined circumstances. If, for example, on a particular day, the keeper wishes to shoot vermin, then a warning notice should be displayed at entry points so that the public may avoid these areas if they so wish.
6. The Friends of Ilkley Moor will be prepared to assist in training courses for the keepers on the implications of running a shoot on public land.
7. The lease for shooting on Ilkley Moor is temporary, thus no permanent structures should be built on the Moor in connexion with the shoot. Furthermore, if nevertheless the shoot has permission from Bradford to build any permanent structures, consent must be obtained under the Commons Act, Section 39, from the Secretary of State since Ilkley Moor is a registered common. In the event of any such application, the Friends of Ilkley Moor will oppose the building of permanent structures.
8. Any activities by the shoot that are seen as inimicable to the public enjoyment of the Moor such as aggressive behaviour by gamekeepers or guns, or a lack of respect for the public right to enjoy the Moor at all times, should be grounds for the immediate termination of the lease.
