Legal dispute
This project aims to raise funds to resolve a claim, or other type of dispute.
Help for a different sort of Hero!
Prescot, Merseyside, United Kingdom
All or nothing
This project needs 100% of its target
Aim
One man (who is 71!) and his dog walk 100 miles to help save Gellings Riding School for generations to come!
Who are we?
My name is Keith. I am 71 years old and I live in Liverpool. I have been fortunate enough to own my own horse, Miranda, for 21 years. For someone who had never ridden before, having a horse join my life was gobsmacking (in a great way!) I have stabled my horse at Gellings Riding School on the Croxteth/Knowlsey border for 18 years. Gellings is an incredibly special place, hence why I am doing my bit to ensure it stays open and available as a community asset for many years to come.
Why are we crowdfunding?
Fifteen years ago, I, together with my friend and fellow horse rider Gail, rode 100 miles of the Trans-Pennine Trail. Gail's son had just been posted to Helmand in Afghanistan, so she decided that she'd organise a fundraising event for "Help For Heroes". Gail would do the fundraising, be sponsored, and ride her horse Bradley, and "You", she informed me, "are going to organise the route, and sort horse transport, and our accommodation and stables, and ride alongside me." And so, for a week in the July of 2011, I, together with my horse Miranda, joined Gail and her horse Bradley, riding from the banks of the River Ouse west of Hull, to Gellings Riding School in Knowsley Village in Merseyside. All in, the journey took us five days.
Fifteen years later, when I found myself seeking an idea to raise monies to support a different sort of hero, my thoughts turned back to that week - and our one hundred mile ride. Why not do it again, after all, fifteen years is nothing - except that it is! Both of the horses - Bradley and Miranda - are retired now, and as far as I am aware, Gail no longer rides. And at seventy-one, I barely do too. So how to cover the 100 miles, if not on horse back? Keith, you'll just have to walk it! But before we get to the detail of that, a bit about Sheila and Gellings Riding School.
Gellings has operated as a riding school since 1986 and is one of only ten riding schools still open across Merseyside. Currently it provides riding lessons and livery stables for over 400 people weekly, as well as hosting primary school, SEND provision and youth club visits; and fundays during the school holidays. Gellings is run by Sheila and her niece Debbie. Sheila first joined Gellings as an instructor in 2003, and her passion for the community, led her to takeover the reins of the running of the Riding School in 2008.
In December 2023, Sheila was contacted by a representative of their landlord - Entindale Ltd - and told that the land and buildings occupied and rented by Gellings were being put up for sale in January 2024. In response to this news, and following several public meetings, supporters of the riding school set up a not-for-profit company - "The Friends of Gellings" - with the objective of raising monies to buy the school and secure its future in social ownership, so that it could continue to provide a safe space for local equestrians.
Whilst these efforts were ongoing, in the Spring of 2024, Freeths, the solicitors acting for the landlord, wrote to Gellings alleging rent arears of £250,000, and stating that all further communication must be through themselves. Gellings took legal advice at this point, and their solicitor responded, denying strenuously that any arrears existed. As a result, the landlord rowed back on their demand for £250,000, accepting that £180,000 of the original amount was not owed, but continuing to demand £72,000. Then, as Gellings were continuing to provide evidence that no rent was owing, on 27th June 2024, Freeths served a notice to vacate on Gellings, under section 25 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. This notice used the alleged arrears as the justification, and in consequence matters then proceeded to Court.
From that point forward Freeths and the landlord, have refused all offers to settle, and resisted Court ordered mediation. Consequently, the legal costs have mounted on all sides, and since the Summer of 2024, Sheila and the Friends of Gellings have been involved in expensive legal proceedings, which to February 2026, have cost them a total of £92,415. This money has come from Sheila personally (£53,500), The Friends of Gellings (£20,937) and Gelling Riding School (£17,978).
Gellings now know how much their fees for the case will cost them in total: it will be £143,019. Should they win, then the landlord will have to repay them £119,823 of this total amount. However, should they lose, then Sheila is liable for an additional amount up to £240,000.
Notwithstanding that Gellings did not owe any arrears, I know that they would have settled this matter if they could have done. However, Gellings have recently been informed that Freeths are taking this case on a no win no fee basis for the landlord and, consequently, Freeths are driving this case into court (1) to maximise their fees and (2) on the assumption that Sheila can't afford to go there and so will run out of money at some point. They are correct on this second point; after spending over £90,000, we are running out of cash.
The case is now scheduled for Liverpool County Court sometime between June and August this year (2026), and between now and then, Gellings need to raise £50,000 to get it to trial. And if they can't do that, then Sheila will be bankrupted and Gellings will be shut, with the riding school horses being sold to meet the debt. The alternative is that between us all we raise the money needed to continue our fight and have our days in Court.
How we’ll spend the money raised
So, with all of the above in mind, and understanding the importance of the continuity of Gellings Riding School, could you help me in raising some of the remaining monies that Gellings needs?
As things stand now, we have raised almost £18,000 of the money we need - and I am aiming to raise another £5,000 to get us almost half way there. So please would you sponsor me per mile? In all I hope to raise sponsorship totalling £50 a mile for each of the 100 miles I plan to walk, along with my collie cross dog Jack.
I do very much hope that you can help me help Gellings Riding School to continue their court fight and ultimately keep Gellings open for many more generations of horse lovers to come.
Help me help a Riding School Hero - Sheila Linder - who has taught generations on Merseyside how to ride.
Help me help her keep one of the last Riding Schools on Merseyside open.
Help me help the Friends of Gellings stop London developers from rubbing out a community facility.
Help me stop Freeth solicitors benefit through a no win no fee arrangement designed to bankrupt Sheila
Help me help Gellings get their day in Court - where I am confident they will win. And when they do win, and get costs back, all of the monies raise through this sponsored walk will then be used to re-open Croxteth Park Riding School in north Liverpool, which means that your support is keeping one riding school open at Gellings, and re-opening a second in Croxteth Park which was closed five years ago.
How can you help?
Please Sponsor Me an amount per Mile to walk one hundred miles of the Trans-Pennine Trail, over seven days. My walk begins at Sprotbrough near Doncaster on Monday 29th June, finishing at Gellings Riding School in Knowsley on Sunday 5th July 2026.
My target is £50 sponsorship per mile walked - enough to raise £5,000 in all. And yes, at seventy-one years of age I know that this is going to hurt a bit!
Thank you.
KEITH (and Jack the dog, and Miranda the horse!)
Funding method
All or nothing – this project will only receive pledges if it reaches its target of £5,000 by 24th June 2026 at 12:00pm