Hello everyone I hope your well, I want to say a big thank you for the warm welcome 
Before I ask what I want to ask, please remember I’m still new to this and getting to grips with the different resources to make sure I can fly in a certian location etc so no mistake has been made deliberately. I went with my Wife and Daughters to Sherbrook Valley where we have been walking many times before, I love wildlife and so I thought we would vlog a day out and whilst being there do a video of myself flying the mini 5.
Before hand I checked ‘The Drone Map’ which I found out about when I got insurance elsewhere (before I knew about Grey Arrows which I have now got my insurance with) and it said I could fly in that location which I was genuinely shocked by when I know its a protected space for all sorts of wildlife. I got some EPIC footage, was absolutely over the moon with the day, then when we left I noticed that the layer for SSSI sites is not on by default with The Drone Map (with Drone Scene it is which is so much better and one of the reasons I joined Grey Arrows)
When I found this out I felt terrible by the fact I had not only flown over the valley but took off and landed there too (on some flat grass away from the heathlands. So this was completely unintentional. Now I know Stafford Council have a policy of no drones taking off or landing or even flying over there land without a permit, however this is a policy and not a byelaw and I always make a point of respecting others and wildlife. But Sherbrook Valley is run through Forestry England which DOES have byelaws that state its prohibited to not only take off and land on there sites, but to also fly over if taking off from elsewhere…
This footage is so good, but do you reckon I would get in trouble if I posted what I have to my YouTube channel?
Finally a big lesson thats been learned is to research research research before going somewhere to fly, and honestly I wouldnt even rely solely on Drone Scene even though its ten times better than The Drone Map, I would still check with the local council and who runs the land such as Forestry England for any byelaws too.
Sorry for the essay,
Jon
PS - If its wise I dont post the footage I got I completely understand, but would love to know as I obviously wont be flying there again
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@FoleyMrs @Foley Not sure what you guys think if you have been there before? I wouldn’t have even flown if I knew what I know now before our visit 
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You know Drone Scene has every council Byelaw, PSPO and Policy built in too, right? 
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REALLY 
I couldn’t see anything when I typed in Sherbrook Valley, Drone Scene is way better than The Drone Map for the pure reason of what you just mentioned, and also the fact all the SSSI are on by default haha
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…
And the support here, from the people that wrote the thing ;o)
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Hmm I dont think Im going to use the footage, but man it was epic 
Sods law right…
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I genuinely love that you can search byelaw’s using Drone Scene! good work to you guys who have done that! So it seems in Stafford Council they have a policy but not a Byelaw so I could fly, but I technically cant fly over Sherbrook Valley even if I take off from none Forestry England land due to Forestry England having a Byelaw to prevent that, so it seems you shouldn’t just check for Byelaws with the local council but also maybe research if the landowner (in this case Forestry England) has a byelaw. Thank you everyone
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I’m not quite following…
A byelaw could only ever prevent take off, it couldn’t prevent overflight of land? 
Can you point me in the direction of that byelaw please, Jon?
I’d be interested to take a closer look 
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Here you go @PingSpike Let me know what you think ok friend 
‘We have byelaws to control people flying drones to where we believe there will be a benefit to the forests. The UK Civil Aviation Authority is clear that byelaws can restrict drone flying that might not usually need landowner permission and this includes flying from public rights of way in the nation’s forests.’ Filming, photography and drones | Forestry England
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Thanks @LifeDoesJon
Will get back to you tomorrow
EDIT: @LifeDoesJon sorry, I can’t see the byelaw on that page?
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I’m only seeing a page about a commercial filming policy?
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If Forest England distributed all of their employees around all of their forests evenly, there would be approximately one staff member per square mile.
Whether you agree that they have the legal mechanisms in place to ban overflights or not, and whether you abide by their requests that you seek permission to fly or not, the chance of anyone challenging you is almost nil.
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Please share why you felt terrible?
What wildlife did you damage with your flight?
SSSI’s are very common and in the UK and as club members we assess very carefully if our presence is likely to cause any damage to the land or distress to it’s inhabitants.
I’ve flown on Cannock Chase a few times and the club has held a MEET there on a few occasions.
We caused no damage or distress.
All flyers should give ‘due diligence’ before decided if to take-off, and I believe 99% of GADC members do (there’s always some knobhead though)
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I’ve contacted Forestry England to request a copy of the byelaw document they reference with their claim of “We have byelaws to control people flying drones”.
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Any drone pilot worth their salt is going to research their surroundings before flying. I think you’re preaching to the converted on this Forum. Whilst Drone Scene is an excellent resource, it’s still the pilots responsibility to make sure all is in order regarding their surroundings before taking off and due diligence has been carried out.
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I see what your saying, point is I didnt upset anyone (I actually had some constructive conversations overall) I was incredibly respective of the wildlife especially as someone who loves wildlife.
It was just the fact they claim to have byelaws. But like @PingSpike said its a ‘claim’ so I’m going to use the footage due to the fact at the time of filming I had no idea of this claimed byelaw and its on one tiny paragraph amongst a huge wall of text (not very clear at all) and I did take steps to check if I could fly or not.
But lets see what Forestry England say to the query regarding there claim. Last thing I wanted was to use the footage and then have someone take legal action against me, chances of that are incredibly slim though right?
Thank you for the message, I look forward to meeting you sometime at a meetup maybe even at the Chase
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Which to be fair I did to the best of my knowledge at the time, I would never intentionally fly somewhere I shouldn’t and I think thats the big point right. I actually saw a video of two police officers saying if they ever found someone flying somewhere where byelaws are in palce and they was not aware they wouldnt just prosecute them, they would simply ask to not fly there again. If you continue after that and then knowing you cant fly there then there could be problems.
I think I have just over thought this and worried too much, anxiety can get the best of me in these situations sadly
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I often ride my mountain bike around this area as do many others - I am sure the bikes will do more damage than your drone. I have flown around here loads and seen others in the air.
Yes the National Forest, like many such locations have a no drone thing in place but if you read the site its about protecting wildlife and other users of the area. As a conscientious drone operator we all need to manage this risk. This part of the Chase is very open and you hardly ever come across other people and when you do they don’t really care what your upto. I would never fly over by the cycle trails by GoApe etc - too many people and just not a safe environment to fly in - same like I would not fly at Hicks Lodge that is also a Forest England location - even in the evenings when I go there and I see like 1 or 2 people in the few hrs I am doing my thing.
So post your video - enjoy the location as we are so lucky to have that space and it needs people to enjoy it so as to not lose it ( granted they do actual forestry work here too so its a commercial location )
for your first few flights the anxiety is real - but the more you do it the more at ease you will become when you see that people don’t really mind - as long as you don’t go out of your way to poke the bear - in 5 yrs of flying 99% of my interactions with people have been really good and only one person has ever given me a bit of grief about flying and I just nodded - agreed with them and let them go on their way - it gets better over time.
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its basically like trespassing - a civil matter and they will just ask you to stop and move on - its only when people become a bit of an arse about the matter does things get out of hand.
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I actually cant wait to get into cycling for fitness And your actually right, snakes will feel the vibrations of someone walking let alone riding a bike, so flying a drone 300 ish ft above the ground is going to do nothing…
Honestly I think its ashame the amount of stick drone flyers get when your responsible, but I’m sure this is something you guys have talked about to the moon and back already. Like @Steviegeek said there is always some knobhead though, I have been birding in the cotswolds before and witnessed idiots trample across rough grassland where Barnies, esteral, and even Short Eared Owls hunt for the ‘perfect shot’ whilst myself and others are sat at a distance watchign through bins. But thats why its down to us to show not everyone is like that…
There are plenty of places I could fly perfectly legally but I wouldn’t out of respect for things like privacy and just being a nuisance. Again its common sense right
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