Hi, thanks for reply, much appreciated.
Again, unfortunately our installation doesn't allow us to install plugins either, it really is locked down tight so we can't make any significant changes and certainly none to core setup. I think supplier wants to keep integrity of site, which is kind of understandable.
I'm going to do an alternative workaround that sits in front of the API that will eliminate the need for the call. Not the perfect fix, but best I can do as far as I can see.
Thanks again,