Laws around bushcraft in the UK

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Fadcode

Full Member
Feb 13, 2016
2,857
894
Cornwall
https://www.gov.uk/buying-carrying-knives


Note: Stealth knives - Knife or spike not made from metal, but ok at home/kitchen or toy (toy????)

So no ceramic, stone, flint, carbon fiber ?? Spike made from fire hardened wood?


The problem with all these laws and regulations is they are so unclear in their meaning, and if you intended to stick with all these , you probably would never leave the house, the one quoted from the above source,

Scotland
In Scotland, 16 to 18 year olds are allowed to buy cutlery and kitchen knives.

Does this actually mean, if you are younger than 16, but older than 18, you are not allowed to buy cutlery and kitchen knives???????
The one misunderstood part of this, is that you are allowed to sell a knife to anyone regardless of their age, as long as the blade is less than 3 inches and is not able to lock.
There are so many Laws and regulations that frankly are so out of date, they are meaningless, most of the bye-laws regarding Dartmoor for instance are so ambiguous its difficult knowing what is right or wrong.
lets look at an example on lighting fires.

8 Fires

No person shall light a fire on the access land, or place or throw or let fall a lighted match or any other thing so as to be likely to cause a fire. This byelaw shall not prevent the lighting or use in such a manner as not to cause danger of or damage by fire of a properly constructed camping stove or cooker.

What exactly is a properly constructed stove or cooker, does this mean a commercially bought item which has the kite mark on it?, can I bring my house cooker and run it off an inverter(lol), or does it mean if I construct a stove or cooker properly from stones and other things I gather, is this ok?????
Extremely vague to say the least, I do travel a lot on Dartmoor, and I do see the remains of fires, so do I take it an open fire is Ok?
I personally carry a gas cooker with me and very seldom light a fire, but the problem with the vagueness of these bye-laws is what do you advise other people to do.
 

Janne

Sent off - Not allowed to play
Feb 10, 2016
12,330
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Grand Cayman, Norway, Sweden
I am sorry, it is the best I find.....
Unclear? I guess created and written by lawyers. Masters of unclear talk and writing.
( I am married to one, and my son is one too...... :( )

It does say there somewhere you should speak to the local fuzz if something is unclear.

Our laws here are a copy of the UK, with some additions.
Just as unclear, trust me!
 

Fadcode

Full Member
Feb 13, 2016
2,857
894
Cornwall
I am sorry, it is the best I find.....
Unclear? I guess created and written by lawyers. Masters of unclear talk and writing.
( I am married to one, and my son is one too...... :( )

It does say there somewhere you should speak to the local fuzz if something is unclear.

Our laws here are a copy of the UK, with some additions.
Just as unclear, trust me!

I was not getting at you Janne because of the ambiguity of these laws, and I do doubt having a word with the local Fuzz even though advised to do so would do any good, because if he/she said it was OK, but when stopped later by another PC who though it was not OK, thats when the trouble starts.
What is important I think it to make sure you read the proper source on the Internet, regarding the Law and bye-laws on these matters,as there are so many interpretations available. And this is why it is so hard to advise somebody on the correct approach to these matters.
 
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MrEd

Life Member
Feb 18, 2010
2,148
1,053
Surrey/Sussex
www.thetimechamber.co.uk
Lots of good bushcraft skills though do not require the use of knife, fire, or sticks.

Yep - I have in the past few years been practising flora and fauna identification, animal tracks and signs and tracking, and animal watching fieldcraft (I am not that good but enjoy the process)

I don’t make fires now, I use a jetboil, and I just carry a penknife, I also forage on public one (Common Land near me) for edibles.

I actually feel more in touch with the outdoors now than I did a number of years ago where I spent ages making fires and sitting under bashas field sharpening an axe. I still have a basha though and am lucky enough to have a permission camp near me.

It’s possible to do bushcraft without breaking laws and regulations
 
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Janne

Sent off - Not allowed to play
Feb 10, 2016
12,330
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Grand Cayman, Norway, Sweden
Words from a wise man called Fadcote!

I am OK with the law as it is in Uk and here, unclear and all, but the stuff about non-metal?

And spikes?????

If interpreted by a hung over police office on a missionr, that could mean your organic, hand whittled tent wooden tent spikes are illegal!
We have all met those officers. Myself met one two weeks ago, outside Heathrow.
Got arrested, but released after 10 minutes of pleading......
 
Last edited by a moderator:

C_Claycomb

Moderator staff
Mod
Oct 6, 2003
7,353
2,363
Bedfordshire
Janne,
Watch your language please. Not sure I want to know the story behind the bee in your bonnet, I am sorry if you had a run in with PC Jobsworth. I met him in Birmingham a few years ago. Not pleasant, but yours sounds worse. Anyway, tacking it all on to this thread isn't the right place. It isn't related to bushcraft laws (this thread), and anyone wanting to find info about police interactions, won't find it here.
 

Janne

Sent off - Not allowed to play
Feb 10, 2016
12,330
2,293
Grand Cayman, Norway, Sweden
I stand corrected.
I just got very upset, thinking about what happened after 5 minutes standing on British soil.....
No, it had nothing to do with bushcraft, just my BPH. Elderly guys problems!
 

Laurentius

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Aug 13, 2009
2,422
614
Knowhere
https://www.gov.uk/buying-carrying-knives



Note: Stealth knives - Knife or spike not made from metal, but ok at home/kitchen or toy (toy????)

So no ceramic, stone, flint, carbon fiber ?? Spike made from fire hardened wood?

That is my antler handled walking sticks done for then. As it happens I have taken them to the house of Lords (not in a legal but a physical sense) and not met any problems. Believe it or not there is still such a thing as common sense in the UK. On the other hand I did have security at the British Museum give me a funny look when they found a spork in my bag. Some kind of fiendish Ninja weapon innit?
 

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