TWO horses that ‘posed a risk to young children’ have been seized from Bishop Auckland after enforcement officers caught the untethered animals roaming around a housing estate in the town.

Officers from Durham County Council had ‘little option’ but to take away the horses from their owners after consistent complaints from members of the public that live near the field where they were kept.

The incident occurred yesterday (March 9) after the horses had escaped from the grassland that they usually stay in and were starting to cause havoc to locals.

Read more: Bilsdale mast latest: People in Northallerton may have to retune

After it was reported to the council wardens online – an effort was made to try and contact the landowners, but the horses were seized regardless.

The reaction from council officials comes after months of work between neighbourhood wardens in Bishop Auckland and landowners, which saw a warning issued about boundary fences.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Durham County Council said: “Neighbourhood Wardens have been dealing with two horses that were untethered yesterday (March 9) and straying into a residential area of the town.

Read more: North East pair Kenneth Hunter and William Trott to pay back £300,000

“People living locally were worried about the risks to young children and property and reported the problem into Durham County Council online.

“The team have been working with landowners and tenants to check their boundary fences regularly to ensure horses are unable to roam freely and become a risk to the public.”

Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

You can also follow our dedicated County Durham Facebook page for all the latest in the area by clicking here.

For all the top news updates from right across the region straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.

Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on newsdesk@nne.co.uk or contact 01325 505054