Public-spirited gardener who planted flowers on muddy verge told she needs 'licence to cultivate'

A gardener who brightened up a muddy verge by planting flowers and shrubs was stunned to be told she was breaking the law. Dr Susannah Beattie was made to apply for a ‘licence to cultivate’ and to pay an £84 fee for the public-spirited planting outside her home in Wulfstan Way, Queen Edith’s, Cambridge. Cambridgeshire County Council has been slammed for “over the top” enforcement of the rules.

Dr Beattie, a GP, decided to plant nine shrubs after seeing two patches of mud which were constantly being churned up by parking from residents, visitors and patients at the neighbouring Cornford House Surgery. Many neighbours said how nice the flowers looked, and it stopped the problem of verge parking, but within a fortnight the council sent a letter saying Dr Beattie had breached the 1980 Highways Act.



This allows the council to control planting on public land and Dr Beattie was told she would need to submit a plan for the planting, which would have to be agreed, and that she would have to pay an £84 fee. Dr Beattie decided to pay up but has called for the rules to be reconsidered. She said: “It doesn’t make sense to be discouraging the local community from beautifying the neighbourhood.

"So many people litter the streets and aren’t brought up for it but if you are beautifying the streets you have to pay extra money. I think it should be looked at because it is a disincentive against people taking ownership of their neighbourhood and making the place look beautiful.” A council spokesman said: “It is standard practice to require a licence to cultivate on highways land. The fee covers the costs of inspecting the site and agreeing a suitable planting scheme that specifies the species and sizes of plants.”