HISTORIC footpaths in the North-East are at risk of being lost forever, according to a walking charity.

A recent report produced by the Ramblers has revealed a serious backlog of paths waiting to be recognised as public footpaths.

Any historic paths not officially recorded as public rights of way by 2026 will be extinguished, meaning many well-trodden paths, and other potentially useful routes in the region would be lost forever.

The Paths in Crisis report revealed more than 4,000 paths are on a waiting list to be determined as legal rights of way in England - and the Ramblers estimates this backlog will take more than 13 years to clear if processed at the current rate.

To help combat this problem the Ramblers has launched the Don’t Lose Your Way campaign.

The Ramblers has also been working with landowners, land managers and local authorities to find ways to make the process for recording paths more efficient, consistent across the country, and less contentious, helping to claim as many historic paths as possible before the 2026 cut-off date.

Ramblers chief executive Benedict Southworth said: “The proposed legislation has been carefully put together by representatives from landowners, paths users, and local government – including ourselves and the NFU – who have worked together for over three years to simplify the law around rights of way for the benefit of everyone.

“This carefully crafted solution should make it easier for historic paths to be added to the definitive map – the official record of all public paths.”