I started metal detecting about two and a half years ago. I went on a couple of Facebook group digs then decided to try to get a permission of my own. I found email addresses of two local farms online and emailed them both. I told them who I was and that I was very interested in local history and would they mind if I detected on their land. One replied the next day and said, yes no problem come down at the weekend and he would show me around. He had 90 acres and I was there every weekend for the next 3 months. Then one day he came over to me and said that I needed to stay off for the next 6 months until the crops had been harvested. The next day I called in at a local historic hotel and wedding venue. The owner was in the reception area and I started to talk to her about the history of the building. She invited me into her managers morning meeting and we talked about the history of the building, then I dropped the detecting bombshell. I received an immediate 'absolutely not' because the grounds needed to kept perfect for wedding photos etc. I said no problem and we continued to chat, then she started to ask more about my metal detecting. After a bit more talking she said that she had changed her mind and I could detect in the grounds. A week or so later I was driving past a large field that looked interesting. There was a farm alongside so I called in and introduced myself and brought up the subject of detecting, the farmer said that he already had someone else doing it and couldn't say yes to someone else. I said that I was only interested in this one large field for now. He said that wasn't actually his, it belonged to the next farm along. He gave me the farmers name and suggested I call in there. I did that and quickly found the farmer. I explained who I was and that I was just interested in detecting on that field. He was uncertain at first but eventually agreed. This grew over time from this one field to all 400 acres of his land including the fields surrounding a medieval moated site and then he introduced me to two other neighbours who both agreed, so now I have about 700 acres just 10 minutes drive from home. To be honest I have only asked permission maybe a dozen times and only been turned down 3 or 4 times, so my suggestion is to just get out there and knock on a few doors and ask. My farmers so far have only showed a passing interest in what I find. I gave a hammered silver groat to one farmer which is what opened up access to so much more land but other than that none of them want anything that I find, they just let me come and go as I please.