RIVERSIDE walks along the Hamble are fast becoming a thing of the past, according to chairman of the Open Spaces Society Rodney Legg.

And Hamble parish council agrees.

Mr Legg published advice last week on how to rescue threatened public spaces beside rivers.

He said: "Along the Hamble people were finding that traditional access points to and from the water were being denied to them. A Nelsonian blind eye has been turned towards them."

He added that places like Hamble's riverside are very important.

"Often there are no other spots along the estuary where you can reach the shore to watch birds or shipping, admire the view or swim.

"They are Cinderella pieces of land that can provide immense interest and fun to residents and children. The danger is that they will be lost through neglect or development."

He said: "Part of the problem is that public hards and slipways are either being privatised, enclosed with adjoining property or being allowed to scrub up through disuse."

Hamble Parish Council clerk Kate Cullen said: "I wouldn't be surprised if this was true."

"If the parish council didn't have the foresight in 1939 to purchase the foreshore between the Royal Southern Yacht Club and the ferry hard, there would be next to no public access."

It is part of the Eastleigh Borough Council's local plan to improve access to the river.

The Minister for Rural Affairs has called for general investigations on how to achieve greater rights for public access to coastal land.