I’d say yes, they are very bulky and even if it’s possible, a total PITA. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” -where’s the fun in that?

I would say Gremlin's above post is probably correct. EVEN IF you managed to remove the guard with the wheel in place, you would then need the car to be on a lift or over a pit to get proper SAFE access to work on the car.

I suspected as much so I am just going to have to fork out for a new jack and axle stands. I know they will pay for themselves in the long run

Definitely a good investment get a half decent one and it should last you. I got a sealey 3t rocket lift for under £200 and it does the job. I think you can buy bundles with jack and stands. I also have a jack pad from powerflex that fits nicely onto the car jacking point to save damaging the bodywork. Inspected the drivers side earth today to find it had broken off previously and the wires fastened to an existing bracket bolt instead. I managed to drill and tap what was left of the original earth mount with an m8 thread and refastend the cable's using a Allen head bolt/washer then coated in protective grease. I used this method on the passenger side also and so far seems OK.

I am really struggling to find any youtube video or workshop link that shows how to remove the inner wheel arch splash guards, basically exactly which bits to unscrew/remove to make sure I dont undo something stupid and make the bumper fall off! Anybody any links they would like to share?

Try this link…it may help?

Thank you Maher2023 this is exactly what I was looking for!