A HYNDBURN animal charity may have to pay out thousands of pounds after its access road has been left ‘riddled’ with potholes.

Because of the recent floods, the road leading to Only Foals and Horses in Oswaldtwistle will cost £6,000 to fix.

The animal sanctuary currently has 95 horses, ponies and donkeys at its Redshell Lane base.

But it doesn’t have the money to resurface the road.

John Noble has been a volunteer at the charity, which is located off Haslingsden Old Road, for five years.

Along with his fellow colleagues, John is now is appealing for help because the road is currently unadopted by the council and visitor numbers are falling.

He said: “We have been told that it’s our problem and we have to fix it.

“We are losing out on visitors because it is the only access that we have got. It’s the main road and nobody wants to come up here. We have gone from having two or three hundred people coming to visit each month to about 50.”

The farm opened in Oswaldtwistle in 1991 and aims to rescue, rehabilitate and rest the many needy animals. The road belongs to the farmer who owns the land but Mr Noble has been unable to contact him.

He said: “We are not responsible for the road and there is no way that we can afford this kind of money.

“We use it every day for transporting the animals, and people’s cars are being damaged.

“We rely on donations and visitors to help keep us afloat.

“But because the road is riddled with potholes we are suffering.”