Ramblers win their battle against Harrow after the private school tried to ban walkers from a public footpath

The £37,000-a-year public school attended by Winston Churchill and Benedict Cumberbatch has two bridleways through its North London grounds.

In 2003 it built a tennis court across one and diverted the path around the court. It also diverted the other path which previously ran though its playing fields.

But campaigners said that the new routes spoiled the views and took their case to the government inspector who ruled in their favour.

The playing fields at Harrow School where a public footpath was redirected with permission

The school claimed the two paths, known as 57 and 58, were diverted due to dog walkers leaving faeces and ramblers interrupting matches.

With the council's permission the school obstructed the footpath 57 with fenced off tennis courts in 2003 and for nine years padlocked both gates and left heavy machinery against one to stop ramblers walking over the courts.

In 2012 the school buckled to local demands and removed the machinery and padlocks, reopening one of the two public footpaths.

Now government inspector Alison Lea has rejected the diversion proposals on the grounds of public enjoyment and said they made 'spectacular' hillside views 'unexceptional'.

The school claimed that dog walkers in the past had left faeces strewn across playing fields

Footpath 58 runs across playing fields and footpath 58 crosses tennis courts and astroturf pitches.

The school, spread over 300 acres, had applied to move footpath 58 to a zigzag route around.

Ms Lea said: "I consider that many of the benefits of the diversions put forward by the School are over-stated.

"In practice it seems that any conflict is limited, both due to the fact that it is often the case that the pitches are not in use and, on the occasions when they are, all the evidence before me is that users divert around the pitch.

"For example Gareth Thomas MP described how he had used FP58 since he joined a running club at the age of around 15 and that in all the years he had been running he could only recall one occasion when a pitch he wished to cross was in use.

"On that occasion he ran around the edge of the pitch and spectators.

"Ms Lloyd said that on the couple of occasions when she had used the path and sport was being played she walked round the top of the pitch.

"Others stated that avoiding a match on such occasions was similar to diverting from the line of a footpath across a field to avoid cows or a farmer ploughing."

Diversion plans rerouted away from the astroturf and tennis court would have increased the route by 1 minute and 47 seconds and forced walkers along a muddy footpath at the top of a slope, which the school have put a boardwalk over.

The school also claimed that dog walkers in the past had left faeces strewn across playing fields.

Ms Lea said: "Although I have concluded that it would be in the interests of the School to divert FP58, it seems to me that the conflict referred to is limited.

"I also query the extent to which the problems referred to by the School, such as trespass and dog faeces on pitches, would be resolved or diminished by the proposed diversion and consider that the School could take other measures to reduce the problems.

"The impact on the public's enjoyment would however be significant and I attach considerable weight to the 'spectacular' views currently enjoyed.

"The straightness of the route and the sense of purpose and history the route provide add to the public enjoyment.

"The diverted route would provide none of these benefits and would lead to a considerable reduction in public enjoyment."

Campaigners included local MP Gareth Thomas and Kate Ashbrook of the Open Spaces Society and Ramblers hailed the victory.

Ms Ashbrook said: "It has taken local people 14 years of strenuous campaigning against the might of Harrow School to save these footpaths, with their splendid views and sense of purpose.

"Now we shall press the council again to ensure that Harrow School reopens the blocked footpath 57.

"We shall be fortified by the inspector's decision-the council can no longer avoid taking action to resolve this mess."

The school now has six weeks to appeal on a point of law against the judgement.

A Harrow School spokesman said: "We are disappointed with the decision but will work with the Council and the local community to bring forward a number of helpful suggestions made in the Inspector's decision letter."