Riders Who Require Additional Assistance

Glen Jakes Riding School would like to thank all our parents, guardians and care assistants for your continued support and assistance, before, during and after horse riding, stable management and walkout sessions.

Your aid is greatly appreciated and highly valued as your input enables us to continue providing this much loved therapeutic, educational and fun recreational activity. Due to the decreasing numbers of volunteers and helpers, we require assistance and support for all participants who require additional help (riders with special requirements or learning difficulties).

To ensure safe and interactive sessions, enabling us to provide the optimum care required for each individual rider, the team here at Glen Jakes will provide the guidance, instruction and basic training to those who are unfamiliar with the assistance procedure we require.

If a private lesson or semi-private lesson is booked, no additional assistance will be required unless we request additional help (at our discretion). The main role for a volunteer / helper is to help assist when rides are mounting and dismounting, leading a horse or walk by the side of the rider.

In some cases two assistants may be required, primarily due to lack of balance, muscle tone or pupils with profound multiple learning difficulties. Volunteers / helpers will be required to follow our guidance and instructions.

Basic Guidelines are as follows: - You will be required to continuously watch and concentrate on the rider you are assisting

- Ensuring both feet remain in the stirrups

- Ensuring the rider remains sat in a central and upright position in the saddle

- Ensuring the rider holds onto the assisting aid (the handle via the front of the saddle) whilst holding the reins, unless authorised otherwise. Our sessions are very rewarding, confidence building, fun and enjoyable with smiling faces full of laughter and joy.

Volunteers and helpers (14 years and upwards) are always welcome to assist in our special requirements / learning difficulties sessions and beginner level lessons, even if you are only available for one hour a week, your help is greatly appreciated and enables more people to enjoy learning to ride.

Thank you for your help and co-operation.

Rebecca Homer and the Glen Jakes Team