A FAMILY are appealing for the return of a beloved horse to take their gravely ill father on his last journey.

The Wilkinson family say an honest mistake has led to their seven horses being seized from council land.

Claire Wilkinson and husband David, of Low Moor, Bradford, said they now desperately wanted to get back a 15-year-old black and white mare called Lucy, which belonged to Mr Wilkinson's terminally ill father.

Joseph Wilkinson, 79, suffers from late-stage Alzheimer's Disease and is being nursed at home.

Mrs Wilkinson said his dying wish was for his beloved mare to take him on his final journey, pulling his coffin on a dray at his funeral.

She said: "He has always been a horse dealer, he has always been a horse man - his father did it just the same.

"That was the best horse he ever owned."

The couple, who have four children, had been tethering seven horses on the site of the now-demolished Delph Hill school in nearby Common Road.

They said they had written permission from a private landowner to keep their horses on the land, which the T&A has seen.

But overnight between October 15 and October 16, the horses were seized by contractors working on behalf of Bradford Council, and the family were left with a notice pinned to a tree saying the animals had been on council-owned land.

Mrs Wilkinson said they hadn't realised that part of the site had been owned by the council, and there was no barrier showing where the dividing line was.

She said if anyone had spoken to them beforehand, they would have happily moved the animals back to the right area.

Mrs Wilkinson said they were now being asked to pay a total of £3,390 to claim back Lucy and her suckling foal, a three-month-old black-and-white filly called Lily.

She said: "We don't have that kind of money."

The Wilkinsons have been told that they won't be able to claim back three of the horses as they don't have pet passports, while details about two other animals are still being checked.

Councillor Val Slater, executive member for housing at Bradford Council, said: "We recognise the distress that this has caused to Mrs Wilkinson; however, these horses were on Council owned land.

"Residents regard horses that are illegally tethered or grazing on council land as a nuisance and there have been incidents in the past where people have been injured by illegally tethered horses.

"This is why we have a contractor who is responsible for impounding any horses found illegally tethered or grazing on Council land.

"Mrs Wilkinson can reclaim all or any of her horses by contacting the contractor and following the procedure."