RESIDENTS in the Kibble Grove area of Brierfield are outraged after a pathway behind their houses which leads out into the countryside was churned up and left an 'eyesore'.

People living near the pathway used it to take their dogs for a walk or to go for a stroll in the country but they said have been stopped in their tracks when farm machinery damaged it.

They have written letters of complaint to Pendle Borough Council's countryside access officer and are unhappy at the attempt which has been made to repair the damage. Colin Mason, who uses the path, said: "After a site inspection the contractor who caused the damage was contacted and he has since scraped the footpaths back but the result is by no means satisfactory.

"We will only been satisfied when the former surface has not been restored. He has dragged all the mud at the side across which is an eyesore.

"At certain junctions where the paths cross going down to Kibble Grove it is almost impossible for someone like me who has had back problems to get along them and it is still very uneven in places. You can walk if you've got wellies on but your dogs get filthy. It has caused a lot of upset among dog walkers.

"

Council countryside access officer Tom Partridge said: "We are still pursuing the matter to get the footpath improved and there have been landowners and contractors involved.

"I am not willing to say anything more about them but I told Mr Mason that I have not given up on it.

"The path was disturbed by agricultural machinery and the people responsible were asked to come back to tidy it up and in essence they did half of the job.

"I agree that it isn't back to what it was before. We are trying to persuade the landowner to put the path right without having to get into legal matters.

.In the next two or three weeks I will know how the landowner is going to respond." Bill Clegg, chairman of the Burnley and Pendle Ramblers Association, said: "I had a look at the footpath after they'd tidied it up a bit but I don't think it's satisfactory.

"It's a mess and there's more work to be done on it but the weather has been so bad recently. We are keeping an eye on it now."