Neither have I :-)
Being a curious soul, I looked up the definition of a bicycle, and the definition of a footpath. It seems a footpath has a definition, which is different from a pavement. A pavement is the paved area at the side of a road. A road extends from ‘hedge to hedge’. A ‘pavement’ is part of the road, but you cannot drive on the pavement (Highways Act 1835), but you can cycle on it at the discretion of the police, even though it is illegal under the Highways Act. But prams can use the pavement, because they are not defined as a ‘carriage’. Hope that’s clear :-)
A ‘footpath’, however, can not be cycled on - I assume this means keep your bike on the bridle way.