Bulldozer threat to riding school
Tuesday 5 February 2008
 An East Sussex equestrian and horse rescue centre has been ordered to tear down a £150,000 indoor school because it was built in the wrong position.
Planning permission was granted in 2006 for the riding school at Ellenwhorne Equestrian Centre in Staplecross. But because power lines were in the way the school was built 30m (98ft) further south than the plans showed and Rother council has said it must come down.
Owner Diane Barclay-Bernard has said she will fight the enforcement order. "We won't close down - we can't close down," she said. "The kids would have no other approved riding centre to go to in this area. "They don't want us to close down - and where would my rescue horses go?"
The council says that, as well as being in the wrong position, the riding school obstructs a public right of way. Ms Barclay-Bernard does not dispute that the school was built in the wrong position, but does not accept it obstructs the footpath. She says she has been told by council planning officers she could apply for retrospective planning permission but believes this would be too costly.
Jane Eost, whose child attends the school said it would be a "disaster" if it had to close down. "It is a very good local riding stables," she said. "We trust Diane implicitly, she looks after the children fantastically, and it is a brilliant school."
(As reported by the BBC news)
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