Posted: 3rd February 2016 | Back to news feed
Leanne Cole, 23 from Bath has been riding at her local Wellow Trekking Centre in Somerset since she was five. Having successfully battled a brain tumour as a child, she was left with scoliosis and hearing loss along with mild learning difficulties, Leanne thrives on the enjoyment that riding brings.
After riding with RDA at Wellow Trekking Centre for 18 years, Leanne moved on to their Accessibility Mark sessions last year when the centre became accredited.
Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA), in partnership with Hoof, the British Equestrian Federation’s (BEF) participation initiative launched ‘Accessibility Mark’ following a successful pilot of the scheme in 2015.
Accessibility Mark was created to offer additional opportunities to enable more disabled people to benefit from the wonderful sport of horse riding. Centres offering this scheme have been accredited by RDA and receive continuous support from them. This valuable knowledge has been acquired over the 40 years that RDA has been offering life-changing activities to disabled people.
Wellow Trekking Centre is a livery and Pony Club accredited yard which offers lessons for all, including RDA sessions, Accessibility Mark and trekking. It is home to 70 horses in total, with 35 of them used for lessons.
Accessibility Mark provide opportunities for a wide range of people and whilst Leanne really enjoyed her time in the RDA sessions, she decided that she would like to keep riding through the school holidays which was made possible through the Accessibility Mark sessions and Leanne has been thriving on it ever since.
Senior Instructor and Yard Manager, Judy Shellard said: “Leanne loves her riding and has progressed so much since she has been with us.”
Leanne attends once a week for her lesson and almost always rides her favourite horse, Alfie, a big coloured horse. She has individual lessons and enjoys jumping and having a canter.
Judy added “Leanne has participated in competitions with the RDA and went to venues such as Hartpury but now rides purely for pleasure and gets a lot out of it. Her family often come along to her lesson providing a great outing for them all.”
Leanne is a great example of someone who has benefited from the RDA and how the introduction of Accessibility Mark has provided her with more opportunities to continue her enjoyment of the sport and expand her skills and equine knowledge.
To find your nearest RDA Group or Accessibility Mark centre click here: www.equestrianindex.com/equestrian-centres/riding-for-the-disabled-groups
or visit www.rda.org.uk.
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