Ministers have been accused of acting unlawfully by sanctioning two new paths through a historic Scots country house and estate regularly used by groups of vulnerable children.

Gartmore House owners have accused the Scottish Government and its national parks agency of failing to take account of its duties under the Equality Act 2010 by failing to protect the privacy of children and adults with learning difficulties that use the property as an escape.

Owners of the 18th century property set in 100 acres of private land in the heart of the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs national park, have won the right to contest the pathway plans through a judicial review at the Court of Session.

Built in the mid-18th century, Gartmore House is billed as a 23-bedroom mansion house and activity centre offering group residential packages, conferences for up to 500 people, and craft activity workshops including quilting, upcycling furniture, dressmaking, knitting, and lace making.

It is part of Gartmore Estate, a charitable trust headed by Peter Sunderland in which profits are channelled back into the upkeep, maintenance, and renovation of the house.

The estate say he decision to allow public access "did not address the potential for adverse effects on those groups with increase vulnerability which may be cause by proximity of core paths".

And they have pointed out in its action that a public authority must in the exercise of its functions under the Equality Act "eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other prohibited act."

READ MORE: Scottish country house forced to cancel 2,250 group bookings and overnight stays focuses on watercolours, furniture and hill walking

Part of a walled garden is leased to the Green Routes charity whose purpose is to provide formal teaching and support in outdoor activities and educational subjects to people with learning difficulties. The whole estate is used for their educational needs, the estate says.

Gartmore House solicitors Gillespie Macandrew told the national parks authority in objecting to the proposal: "We have been given an example of one person with additional needs who became distressed and agitated by a particular combination of colour and clothing.

"At present the access arrangements are suitable - they strike a balance between allowing access without it being actively promoted."

The estate is also a base for the Craigmore Centre adventure programmes - whose attendees are from schools, youth organisations, churches, orchestras and choirs but the majority of those attending are children.

And they said that by law land used for the purposes of a school are excluded from access rights, let alone core paths.

The Herald:

"While the legislation does not state the reason for this, it is self-evident that it is because the adverse impacts outweighed the public benefits," the solicitors said.

In the legal action which is directed initially at the national park authority, Gartmore House say that the groups using the property "required to use the associated grounds with safety and privacy".

Scottish ministers directed that a public inquiry was held after the paths were added to the local network.

Gartmore managers told the national park authority: "There would be a serious impact on our ability as an orgânisation to cater for vulnerable groups and school groups if we were unable to close the route/divert the members of the public for any period of time and at short notice.Under the legislation this is not permitted.

"We would be restricted in being able to control access to the site, when required to do so for operational reasons. The impact on the charity would lead to it being unsustainable and it would have to cease operating at this site."

They added: "As the largest enterprise operating in the tourism sector in this area, we are of the opinion that the creation of [the paths] will result in no incremental economic benefits and if anything the impact to the exisiting enterprises operating on the Gartmore Estate is likely to be negative."

But the Scottish Government-appointed reporter recommended in December, last year, that the paths should be allowed.

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Ministers agreed and directed the national parks authority to adopts the paths plan.

Gartmore House said the reporter had indicated in approving the paths that the effect on children and vulnerable groups was manageable and acceptable.

The estate states in court documents: "The Reporter and the [national park authority] failed properly to consider the nature of the business and the regular use of Gartmore House and its associated property by children and vulnerable groups, including children and adults with learning difficulties and by religious groups that require privacy."

Gartmore House say that the Reporter, the ministers and the national park authority failed to even record that they had made representations over their Equality Act duties.

It said that there was therefore a breach of a statutory duty under the Equality Act to give "proper, adequate and intelligible reasons" for the decision.

They also say that the Reporter, the ministers and the national park authority erred in law by failing to address why the additional paths were necessary in the first place.

They said that the national park authority had "acted unlawfully, failed to fulfil its statutory duties, failed to give proper, adequate reaons for its decision and in all the circumstances acted unreasonably".

The national park authority is being pursued because of its decision in June to adopt an amended Core Paths Plan including the Gartmore House paths.

The park authority said in its defence that it had not discretion over complying with the direction of ministers, had not acted unreasonably, and argued that there was no real prospect of success with the legal proceedings.

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It told Gartmore House managers that there had been 15 letters of support from locals for the path and that there was "clear community interest".

"These additions would provide attractive off-road options through woodland and with views of surrounding parkland and fields," the authority said.

And they said that a modification of the Land Reform Act in 2013 closed a loophole in the original legislation and access rights on core paths can be suspended.

"Our due diligence around access rights and educational purposes has not raised any reasons as to why the paths in question should not become core paths," it said.

Gartmore House said the basis for the direction by ministers was "unlawful" in a Court of Sesson hearing.

Gavin McColl QC for the national park objected to the bid for a judicial review over its adoption of the path plan because it had no option but to do so after the ministers' direction.

"The reality is that what it really seeks to do is to attack the decision of the Scottish ministers, the direction of the Scottish ministers."

He said Gartmore House had sought not to challenge the directon of ministers even though they had been aware of it since March 23.

"Now, in those circumstances, my straightforward submission is that this does not enjoy any reasonable prospect of success, because it attacks the wrong thing.

"Put another way, even were the petitioner to be successful in challenging the non discretionary administrative act of [the national park authority] that would still leave the direction of the Scottish ministers standing.

Video: Gartmore village

"The [national park authority] would then find itself in a situation where it was still under a direction from the Scottish ministers to adopt the core path plan, and indeed it would be obliged to do so."

But Alasdair Burnet QC for Gartmore House said that if the national park decision was overturned through the judicial review, it would be "irrational" to say they were obliged to adopt it again because of ministers' direction remained.

"It is unlikely that ministers would insist on it being adhered to if the court found that it was unlawful," he said.

Lord Clark in sanctioning the judicial review said: "I've not been persuaded that these grounds have no real prospect of success."

In October the country house managers which had to cancel 2,250 group bookings and overnight stays scheduled throughout the year said they were diversiying amid the coronavirus crisis by ramping up its offering of activities including recycling furniture, watercolour painting and hill walking.

It secured funding of £200,000 from Bank of Scotland, through the coronavirus business interruption loan scheme to pay for overheads and support its new strategy.

A sharp increase in demand for the activities it is offered meant it was hiring 30 new tutors on a freelance basis to run courses, with 10 people per class to allow for social distancing.