By Aileen Robertson

VANDALS HAVE caused thousands of pounds worth of damage at a Fife disabled riding centre.

Riding for the Disabled’s Dunfermline group, based at Shiresmill, faces an estimated repair bill of nearly £4000 after thugs went on a wrecking spree on Tuesday afternoon.

A horse shelter, which was only completed last summer, was razed to the ground after it was set on fire.

The lid of a horse trough was ripped off and the ball-cock removed so it overflowed, and a security light was smashed.

Group secretary Rona Gerrard said there was also evidence the vandals had tried to gain access to the indoor arena.

However, she said she was thankful the six horses at the stables had been left unhurt.

She said, “The horses’ welfare is paramount. They’re OK but they’re going to need a lot of TLC. They’ve been spooked by what has happened and are a bit jumpy.

“They don’t like the smell of smoke or the noise of flames.”

Because the Dunfermline group of Riding for the Disabled is a registered charity, it is run by volunteers and relies entirely on donations to keep the centre running.

Mrs Gerrard continued, “This is disheartening. It’s mindless vandalism.

“Because it’s for people with physical disabilities, learning difficulties and medical conditions, it is a not-for-profit riding school. We are not catering for wealthy people.

“The shelter was only erected last summer. It gave the horses shelter in bad weather or very hot weather, and was also used as a shelter for horses that had to be isolated from the rest of the herd.

“We were given £2000 by the Yorkshire Building Society for it but there were additional costs because some ground work had to be done, so the total was £3600.”

It is not the first time the riding centre has been targeted by vandals.

In May, 2004, someone broke into the restroom at the complex, stole items including tools and fire extinguishers, cut wires, made holes in the walls and sprayed the walls.

And recently, a council-owned van was damaged in the centre’s car park.

Inspector Dougie Goldie from Fife Constabulary, condemned the vandalism but indicated he was close to tracing the culprit.

He said, “We are following a definite line of inquiry and we are treating this as wilful fire raising.

“This is the second incident of vandalism at the stables in the last couple of months, but we are happy to say that we apprehended the person responsible for the first act very quickly.”

The shelter was set on fire at around 4pm on Tuesday and police are appealing for anyone who saw any suspicious activity in the area around that time to get in touch on 0845 600 5702.