A WOMAN who was knocked over by an out-of-control dog last year, sustaining permanent injury, has described her treatment by East Lothian Council staff as “despicable”, after she installed a gate from her garden into Polson Park.

Catherine Richards, 69, of Tranent’s Edinburgh Road, was knocked to the ground by a Labrador near Musselburgh Racecourse in October last year.

She spent two weeks in the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh and then five weeks at East Lothian Community Hospital, having suffered a broken shoulder, elbow and knee.

When she returned home, she noted that neighbours had gates in the fence at the rear of their houses onto Polson Park, so she also installed a gate to make it easier for her to walk her dogs.

But two weeks ago, having used the gate for a year, Mrs Richards discovered it had been fixed shut by council workers.

Mrs Richards said: “Two weeks ago I went to take the dogs out on a Saturday morning and, with no notification, not a thing, [the council] had put iron grilles outside my gate, so I couldn’t get out.

“I phoned the council, a guy came out, and he said: ‘This is shocking.’

“He was quite willing to take it down but he wanted to double check on the Monday.

“On the Monday morning, this person from the estates office called me and said I had no right taking [the grille] down.

“He hardly let me get a word in edgeways.

“I asked: ‘What about the other 22 gates?’ He said: ‘I’m not interested in them.’

“This man said to me: ‘Your health is not my problem’, and then he said: ‘You’re not in a wheelchair now.’”

Mrs Richards, who formerly owned a B&B, also on Edinburgh Road, said that the accident had left her too weak to walk the dogs round to the park, and she was now having to pay for dog walkers.

“Having had this accident, it cost me a fortune to get people to walk the dogs,” she said.

“I phoned the councillor, Colin McGinn – he took a week to get back to me.

“He tried to do what he could but what he didn’t do was walk round that park and have a look at the other gates.”

A council spokesperson said: “The gate has been installed without seeking prior permission and its location, adjacent to a public path, and opening into and across the path, poses a potential safety risk to people walking and cycling on the path.

“It has been temporarily closed for use and the householder advised of appropriate action to make this safe for use.”

Councillor Colin McGinn said he could not comment on the case but that he was “involved with this issue”.