Horses have been removed from a riverside park after the city council intervened.

Local residents claim the animals have grazed at Bowthorpe Southern Park, in the west of Norwich, for more than a decade, but bailiffs have now taken the horses away.

A spokesman for the city council said the increasing numbers of horses grazing illegally had forced the council's hand.

The council is in talks with a person who claims to own the horses.

Because the park is owned by the city council, its officers must enforce licensed and controlled grazing.

The spokesman said: 'The horses are currently being held by the bailiff – who has been instructed that we want them to be rehomed.

'The latest situation is that the possible owner has contacted us about the horses and been urged to get in touch with the bailiffs as regards ownership and reclaiming them – as they are dealing with the matter on our behalf.

'We very much hope that after all the lengthy negotiations and sensitive handling of the matter it reaches a positive conclusion for everyone involved.'

Notice was given at the end of May, warning that the horses would be removed unless they were taken away by their owner.

Residents previously told this newspaper that the police had occasionally been called because the animals had escaped on to the road.

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