DRESSED smartly in her black riding jacket, jodhpurs and hat, Stephnie Bell is excited as she sets off on the last day of the hunting season.

But it could be the last time that she and her friends at the South Durham Hunt will gather, in the backyard of Prime Minister Tony Blair's constituency.

"People do not understand hunting - that's why they're trying to ban it," she said. "They see it as something pompous old men wearing red coats do, and their wives and children are dragged along against their will.

"This is not true. We are not snobs, we are a community. Everybody knows everybody, and look out for each other."

Her enthusiasm is infectious, as she and other members of the hunt - who range from car salesmen to farmers - sit in the living room of huntmaster Mark Shotton's home, in Wingate, County Durham.

She and 11-year-old friend, Sophie Watchman, whose father, Gary, is hunt leader, realise that what they are doing is seen by the outside world as cruel, but they see it as a part of country life.

Stephnie admits she has seen foxes killed but this does not phase her.

She said: "It is over in a matter of seconds. Young foxes can outrun the hounds. What we catch are the older foxes or the injured ones."

Stephnie's parents, Gordon and Janet, do not take part in the hunt. Mrs Bell does the catering for events, and Mr Bell follows the riders in his car.

He said: "I would rather she does this than hang around street corners. She takes a bit of stick at school for doing it, but she is mature about it."

Stephnie and Sophie talk about travelling to London to protest against the Government's Hunting Bill, which will ban the sport if it becomes law later this year.

Sophie gives a rendition of a pro-hunting song she sang at the demonstration. She said: "I got on someone's shoulders to sing it. Everybody cheered afterwards.''

South Durham Hunt has been running for 170 years. It is not just the horsemen and women who gather for the weekly events on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

It has a loyal following - many treating its meetings as a family day out with people taking along a packed lunch.

Sometimes the gathering does not find a fox. This was one of those occasions.

Mr Shotton said: "We saw several foxes yesterday and they just made fools of us. We have one fox that we call Tony. He runs from the woods behind Tony Blair's house and we have chased him three times, but we have not caught him yet. Hopefully, he will be there for a long time to come."

The Hunting Bill was discussed in the Commons last Thursday and will be discussed again in a fortnight's time, when MPs will seek to amend proposed legislation so that it outlaws all hunting with dogs.