I just bought a DJI air 2s and am wondering if anyone knows where i am allowed to fly in Billericay or surrounding areas. I understand the council don’t permit it on any of their green spaces.
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The council have no byelaws so not sure where you got the info from
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I emailed the council and they told me this
“We do not permit flying of drones at Mill Meadows or any of our green spaces in the borough”
Which is nice, but they are not the Civil Aviation Authority. So "You Have No Authority Here Jackie Weaver. Takeoff and land from Public right of way - see leaflet to handout in membership area.
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Thats your first mistake ;o) don’t fall for the other one of asking of Facebook
Less is more with the local authority.
Enjoy your flying 
If concerned take off from a highway - public footpath or a footway alongside the road - these are owned by Essex CC
Wow @Seanm, you were really lucky to get an answer from the Council, I contacted Basildon Council 8 months ago asking if there were any bylaws around Pitsea, Wat Tyler park, still waiting for an answer so I wouldn’t worry too much. I fly sub 250g drones, DJI mini pro 3 and a DJI mini 1, generally I fly in Glouster Park when I can, I’ve never been challenged, but I do make sure that the nearby area is safe to fly, not too many people about. The only time I have been approached was by a little fella who said ‘is that a drone, my Uncle’s got one of them’ and then asked how high and how fast can it go, the parents were quite friendly too, I was in the process of packing up and going home, but had a nice chat with the little fella. I think he was asking his Dad for one as they walked away. Have fun flying just be aware of the surroundings. The guys on here are very knowledgeable and extremely helpful so never be worried about asking questions, remember there are no stupid questions its all education. 
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Thanks for all the replies. I think the consensus is the Nike slogan. Just do it.
@amdul would you like me to reply to the council email asking for specific byelaws just to wind them up?
Na that’s ok, I just fly when I want to, they answered by saying they would pass the question to the correct department, if they can’t be bothered to answer then I consider that as a ‘go fly’ 
You’re based around Basildon then? Where do you usually fly from?
Mainly in Gloucester Park in Basildon, I tend to go there early morning or late in the afternoon as there tends to be less people and dog walkers, I stay away from the fishermen as I worry about upseting the fish and the water birds. There is also a skate park and I avoid that too, the youngsters can be there quite late in the day, although they are not normally worried if I fly near them, well above them if I fly over that area. In general I use the park for practice to get used to the controls and build my confidence. Last week I took the drones to Hadleigh Castle, its a National Heritage site so you can’t TOAL from their land but you can fly over from outside of their land from a public footpath or road. My friend flew but I didn’t, I didn’t feel comfortable with the amount of people there, a cub scout group was visiting and lots of people picnicking and groups drinking in the afternoon sun, I will go back another day but maybe early morning just to take some shots and video of the ruins.
Check out Dronescene for places to fly it’s brilliant.
Thanks, Andmul. I’m also looking to improve my flying skills, which is why I wanted somewhere local. I’ll just find a local green space and fly from there.
I’ll check out Hadleigh castle too at some stage. Interesting to know that when they say you can’t fly there, it means you can’t TOAL there, but its the CAA that is responsible for the skies.
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Your drone won’t be on any council land so as long as you are by by the rules, it just isn’t a problem.
@nowteft You mean if I TOAL outside council land I can fly over it and that’s beyond their remit?
As far as I’m concerned ( much better qualified on here) they can’t stop you flying over their land as long as you aren’t over people roads houses and keep distance from people not in your party then it’s got nothing to do with them. Correct me if I’m wrong anyone. it’s a good debate to have this, even if it’s been hell before
In my two years flying I’ve used common sense and never had a problem.
Id advise you take the test because it’s easy, helpful and you can show a CAA card to people less educated than yourself. I always put a smart jacket on and try and look as official as possible so I know what I’m doing some people think I do LOL
I’m not sure they legally can.
Agree. Your common sense made the correct decision. You “feel” what’s the right thing to do.
That all depends on the weight of your drone of course
Our very own Good to Go will help, especially with overflying etc
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I fly Gloucester Park often with no issues. Also Wat Tyler and 2 Tree Island. I once got questioned at Westley Heights by an “official” but he soon gave up and I had a good flight. Lake Meadows is an odd one. I was approached by a parent who asked me to stop because there are children in the park. I explained that my drone is 400FT up and there were children on the pavement 10FT away. Ignorance just plain ignorance.