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Visit the charity's profileAvon Riding Centre for the Disabled, an independent charity and one of the largest of the Riding for the Disabled Associations (RDA)s centres in the UK, is launching an emergency funding appeal today. The appeal will support the Avon Riding Centre through this immediate crisis with vital money being used to care for 22 horses and ponies.
The centre operates from a 100-acre estate in Henbury, Bristol (BS10) and the emergency fund appeal will help to support it following the enforced shutdown. It currently faces serious financial hardship and without a vital injection of funds is at risk of permanent closure.
The Centre relies almost entirely on its income from riding, non-mounted therapeutic sessions with horses and Hippotherapy. Activity at the Centre may have stopped, but care for its horses and ponies, including feed, hay and vets bills, has necessarily continued. The emergency fundraising appeal is needed to support the costs of caring for the horses and to enable the Centre to be able to re-open (in a phased manner) when appropriate.
The Centres closure has negatively affected not only its beneficiaries (around 200 disabled adults and children), many of whom rely on their weekly RDA sessions for physical therapy, health and wellbeing, but also their families and carers who greatly value the difference that access to the Centres specially trained horses makes to the children and adults in their care. In addition to the Centres beneficiaries more than 200 regular volunteers were involved each week at the Centre providing support to the riders. Many of the volunteers are over retirement age and relied on their regular sessions to keep them fit and to maintain mental health via vital social connections.
Prior to the coronavirus shutdown, the Centre had embarked on an ambitious development plan to diversify and provide further services at its estate in connection with new partner charities for both the local and the wider communities of Bristol and North Somerset. These plans will be put into effect as soon as Government advice allows, but only if the Centre can achieve its funding appeal target of £150,000.
By choosing to support Avon Riding Centre you are helping to ensure the future of the riders. For some, horse riding offers them an escape, an opportunity to fit in. Help the Centre to reopen. Help ensure they can continue to change lives.
During all the thirty plus years I've had the privilege to be involved as a volunteer and a coach at our wonderful Centre, I have seen so many of our riders of all ages gain huge benefits both physically and psychologically from participating in regular weekly lessons. - Gill, Trustee and Coach
For many it is quite simply the highlight of their week parents of children with complex needs have told us that their child / young adult absolutely knows which day they ride and will always be keen to get up and dressed ready to go, whereas getting them motivated to get up in the morning on other days could be much more tricky!
The empathy between horse and rider is so special and the calming influence that horses have cannot be underestimated or easily replicated elsewhere.
Avon continues to help me achieve my dream which is to enjoy riding again with no pain or pressure. I may only walk with the very rare canter or gallop thrown in for a treat but I am completely whole again and along the way I have made some amazing, beautiful friends. - Clare, Rider
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