Council to spend £450,000 on Winnie-the-Pooh events

The funds have been pulled from other earmarked reserves, Wealden District Council said

A charity is to receive £450,000 of council funding to mark the 100-year anniversary of Winnie the Pooh.

Wealden District Council said it will give the funds to The Ashdown Forest Foundation to hold a series of events marking the childhood character's centenary.

Ashdown Forest, within the East Sussex local authority's boundary, inspired the Hundred Acre Wood of A.A. Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh stories.

The council has debts of almost £53m, according to BBC analysis. The council said the figure related entirely to its Housing Revenue Account - a ring-fenced account where a local authority records the finances for its own council housing stock.

'Damage to very precious areas'

The authority and charity want to promote tourism and ensure the woodland is safeguarded, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

"Because of his worldwide fame and Disney association, Winnie-the-Pooh's centenary will be celebrated with or without our support," council leader James Partridge said.

He added that without funding, the celebrations could "turn into unmanaged visits to an unprepared heathland and will probably do damage to very precious areas".

"Others will profit, and certainly the rest of Wealden won't see the benefit," he added.

Council officers said that the money would be pulled from earmarked reserves and paid in arrears.

Ashdown Forest in East Sussex inspired Winnie-the-Pooh

Deputy council leader Rachel Millward said that the local authority wanted to pull in extra funding from other bodies.

Part of the project is expected to include an installation, which would transform the forest's visitor centre into a life-sized pop-up book.

There are also plans to create new walking trails within the forest, designed to avoid protected sites.

A.A. Milne first published Winnie-the-Pooh in 1926.

The stories follow the adventures of Winnie the Pooh – a friendly yellow bear who loves honey – and his friends: Eeyore, Piglet, Tigger, Owl, Rabbit, Kanga and Roo.