Couple who say they are 'living in fear' of locals DON'T own land

‘Townie’ couple who say they are ‘living in fear’ of Lake District locals are WRONG to say they own the land that has sparked £40,000 legal battle with neighbours, documents reveal

• Bridget Kelly and Richard Wozniak moved to Rosgill in Lake District six years ago 
• Dispute over whether they have ‘colonised’ a small patch of grass
• Couple are suing Chloe Randall for £40,000 and claim she ruined their standing locally and led to them being ostracised and left out of community events

A ‘townie’ couple who claimed they are ‘living in fear’ of locals are wrong to say they own the land that sparked a £40,000 legal battle, documents have revealed. 

Former accountant Bridget Kelly retired to the 50-strong village of Rosgill in the Lake District with her partner Richard Wozniak six years ago and claims they own a small triangular patch of land outside their home.  

However, neighbour and campaigner Chloe Randall insists the patch of grass – which the incoming couple say they own – is a ‘village green’ which residents of Rosgill and surrounding villages have been ‘accustomed to using…for hundreds of years.’ 

And documents from the HM Land Registry show the couple owns a patch of land to the left of the ‘village green’ and a patch of land to the right of it. 

The Lake District National Park Authority then ruled that the roads surrounding the patch of grass near the couple’s home should be classed as public bridleways.

Ms Randall went on to set up an online blog titled ‘Concerned of Rosgill’, on which the couple say she branded them ‘social pariahs’ and ‘townies’ and accused them of being ‘bullies and liars’.

Former accountant Bridget Kelly (left), who retired to the 50-strong village of Rosgill in the Lake District with her partner Richard Wozniak six years ago, is now suing their neighbour Chloe Randall (right) for £40,000 in a libel battle

Neighbour and campaigner Ms Randall insists the patch of grass (pictured) – which the incoming couple say they own – is a ‘village green’ which residents of Rosgill and surrounding villages have been ‘accustomed to using…for hundreds of years. Pictured: A screenshot from Ms Randall’s blog

The blog currently shows a letter from a Cumbria Constabulary Inspector, Nick Oliver, which states that members of the public are allowed to cross the bridleway on foot or horseback but may be causing an offence if they drive a car through it.   

The couple say they toiled for months to transform Abbott House, which is believed to have cost around £300,000, from a dilapidated wreck into their dream home.   

But within two years of moving into their three-bed cottage, they were at the centre of a community row over the public’s right to park and drive around the small triangular patch of grass and track in front of their house.

Dr Wozniak, who was a private dentist in Fleet, Hampshire, retired to develop his passion for wildlife photography while Ms Kelly took up bell-ringing at a nearby church.  

Documents from the HM Land Registry (pictured) show the couple owns a patch of land to the left of the ‘village green’ and a patch of land to the right of it

Ms Kelly and her partner are suing their neighbour, claiming £40,000 libel damages over the blog, which they say ruined their standing locally and led to them being ostracised and left out of community events.

‘All we wanted – and still want – is to be left in peace to enjoy our property,’ Ms Kelly told High Court judge, Mr Justice Soole.

But Ms Randall, an administrator and woollen tie maker, denies libel, accusing the couple in court of ‘years of harassment of members of the village and beyond’ in what she termed ‘The Battle for Rosgill Green’.

The court heard that Ms Kelly and Dr Wozniak previously lived in Hampshire, where Dr Wozniak had his private dental practice, before setting himself up as a wildlife photographer, venturing to remote areas of Africa to shoot exotic animals.

The area of land in dispute is the triangle of grass at the centre of this picture which villagers say has been used as common land for ‘hundreds of years, but Kelly and Wozniak believe they own  

Following his retirement and with Ms Kelly, who had worked for Price Waterhouse Cooper before qualifying as an accountant, working part time, they sold up and eventually moved to Rosgill in 2015 to pursue their country dreams.

Ms Kelly told the court that they had only been in the north for a matter of months when friction began with campaigners over public use of the land the couple claim is theirs.

They were accused of having ‘colonised’ the ‘green’ and endured a number of incidents including people mowing the patch, blocking their access, and driving a 4×4 over it, she told Mr Justice Soole.

Ms Kelly added that she and her partner were also told they ‘would be dealt with by ‘community law’ and that we would not be made welcome in the community’.

The bad feeling over the ‘green’ came to a head with Ms Randall’s online blog, set up in 2017, on which the couple claim she posted a series of nine libellous posts in 2019.

One posting refers to ‘townies’ turning the countryside into a ‘retirement park’ and suggests that the couple did not understand the alleged long use of the patch as a community space.

Dr Wozniak and Ms Kelly say they were accused online of stealing land, ‘brainwashing’ a vulnerable local into their camp, acting like ‘liars, thieves and bullies’ and ‘spitefully’ attempting to block the track.

And they say the offending posts unjustly branded them ‘social pariahs in Rosgill’ – although they still have friends there – as well as labelling them ‘hypocrites and idiots’.

Both say the posts took a devastating toll on their reputations and enjoyment of life in the quiet village which they had thought would be a haven for them.

‘The defamatory statements posted by Ms Randall have made me personally feel humiliated, embarrassed and harassed to the extent that they have actually ruined my life,’ said Ms Kelly.

Pictured: Ms Randall’s blog Concerned of Rosgill  

Now Ms Kelly and her partner are suing their neighbour, claiming £40,000 libel damages over the blog, which they say ruined their standing locally and led to them being ostracised and left out of community events. Pictured: The triangular patch of grass which is the alleged village green

‘Abbott House was very much our ‘dream home’ but the activities of Ms Randall have made me feel like a prisoner in my own house.

‘At times I have been too frightened to go outside for fear that Ms Randall or one of her supporters might be there.

‘Whereas I was once eager to engage in community activities, I now think twice before joining in for fear that other attenders have seen the comments made about us, and view us in a negative light.’

Ms Kelly says that, although they claim ownership of the patch of grass, they were always happy to share use of the track, and never intended to fall out with anyone.

But Ms Randall denies libel and says the ‘Concerned of Rosgill’ blog developed in tandem with her efforts to have the track alongside the green designated a public bridleway and to boost the campaign in ‘the battle for Rosgill Green’.

She says the area has been used by the whole community for generations and ‘is widely known as Rosgill Village Green’, telling the judge: ‘The village has for hundreds of years been accustomed to using this piece of ground…for access, farming, leisure and commercial purposes.’

At the time the blog was set up, she was pursuing a right of way application with the local council, which ultimately led to the track alongside the green being declared a bridleway, she said.

She had intended the blog to ‘remind the community of the lengths to which the claimants have demonstrated that they are prepared to go in pursuit of their determination to have exclusive use of the disputed ground.’

‘Various individuals and bodies tried to explain the historic use of the land, but the claimants seem unable to accept that any activity of any sort has ever taken place in Rosgill prior to their arrival,’ she added.

She said the couple’s exclusion from parts of village life – including not being invited to a local councillor’s Christmas party – were nothing to do with the blog posts.

‘Richard and Bridget’s extraordinary campaign has led to their exclusion from a number of village events, hence the comment that they are social pariahs,’ she said.

Dr Wozniak and Ms Kelly had made repeated efforts to block access to the track and grass patch, which provide a convenient turning circle for villagers, she claimed.

She also claimed in court the couple had installed CCTV, reshaped the track, spooked cattle, and tried to ‘criminalise the reputations of so many in the community’.

The trial continues.

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