Pippa Middleton and husband James Matthew embroiled in village row over use of footpath at £15m country estate
Locals claim to have used the path for over 50 years
www.independent.co.ukHere’s the latest on Pippa Middleton’s footpath inquiry based on recent reports:
- An open public inquiry is taking place in Kintbury to decide whether a contested footpath along Mill Lane near Barton Court should be officially recognised as a public right of way. The hearing, run by a government inspector, began in mid-May 2026 and is expected to produce a decision a few weeks afterward.[1][2][6]
- Both sides—the Ramblers UK and the landowners (Pippa Middleton and James Matthews)—are presenting evidence and calling witnesses. The Ramblers seek to add the route to the Definitive Map, while the landowners have raised privacy and security concerns but those points are not expected to influence the legal outcome of the rights-of-way decision.[6][7]
- Local council and community perspectives have included safety concerns about alternatives when the route is closed, and several residents and local figures have engaged with the process, with coverage noting the public nature of the inquiry and the potential implications for long-standing access rights.[3][4]
Illustration of the situation:
- A public hearing location: Coronation Hall or Jubilee Hall in nearby Kintbury, with sessions on consecutive days and the inspector weighing decades of footpath use against estate ownership status.[1][6]
If you’d like, I can pull a concise timeline of key dates and summarize the main arguments from both sides, or track the official decision once announced. I can also provide a short explainer on how public footpath rights are established in the UK, if that would help.