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Disabled riding charity prepares for £2.2m move

Kate Justice
BBC Hereford & Worcester
Gavin Kermack
BBC News, West Midlands
BBC A young boy in grey tracksuit trousers and top is sitting on a brown horse with a white face in an indoor arena.BBC
Bobby, 8, has been taking lessons at HRDA for two years

A charity which supports more than 150 disabled children and adults says its new home will allow it to double the number of people it helps.

Herefordshire Riding for the Disabled Association (HRDA), currently based at Holme Lacy College, has raised almost £2.2m for a purpose-built facility on 40 acres of land near Ross-on-Wye.

Trewen Meadows includes an Olympic-sized indoor arena and 20 stables, as well as a modern viewing gallery, a full kitchen and toilet facilities.

"It's a beautiful environment here," said chairman David Harding. "It's a very calm environment and a great opportunity for us to welcome so many more clients who can benefit from the therapies that we provide."

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The money has been raised through grants and public donations.

HRDA has been operating for more than 30 years, but Mr Harding said the charity needed its own base.

An older man with white hair on the sides of his head is standing in front of a field. He is wearing blue-rimmed glasses and a high-visibility yellow waistcoat over a blue fleece.
Chairman David Harding says the move will allow the charity to help a wider range of clients

"We only rented land at Holme Lacy," he explained. "This land we own, the building we own, and it's a good basis to provide a long-term future for Herefordshire Riding for the Disabled."

Eight-year-old Bobby has been visiting HRDA for two years. His mother, Lottie, said it had been a huge help.

"Bobby's not been in school, so he's not having that social interaction," she said. "Coming here, it's been somewhere he can socialise with adults, children, horses. It's been really good for him."

A young woman with long black hair tied back is standing in front of a horse stable and smiling broadly at the camera. She is wearing a mid-blue zip-up top. An older woman, also with long black hair tied back, is standing to her left. She is wearing a dark blue zip-up jacket over a white top.
Sonal Samani's mother Gita says her daughter loves visiting the centre

Sonal Samani is a regular user of the centre, but her mother Gita said she hoped to bring her to the new centre even more often.

"She loves coming here; she meets others," she explained. "It's a highlight."

Nigel Sherriff said taking part in activities at the centre gave his daughter Evangeline "a real buzz".

"It's worth it, even if it didn't do anything else – just for that."

A girl with shoulder-length dark hair and wearing a blue zip-up hoodie is standing in front of a stable. A white horse is behind her. A man wearing a black Puma baseball cap and a blue zip-up top is standing slightly in front of the girl.
Nigel Sherriff says his daughter Evangeline gets "a real buzz" from coming to the centre

Mr Harding said it was hoped the new centre would allow the charity to help a wider range of clients, such as people suffering from loneliness and Alzheimer's patients.

Centre manager Claire Chandler said the move would also benefit the animals.

"We're able to offer the horses a much better lifestyle, so they'll be able to go out a lot more because we've got a lot more land," she said. "We'll also be able to have more horses, so the horses will have less work to do between them."

A young woman with long dark blonde hair is standing in a covered horse arena and smiling at the camera. She is wearing a hi-viz waistcoat over a light brown jumper.
Centre manager Claire Chandler says the move will provide a better home for the horses and benefit clients

HRDA needs to raise another £80,000 to complete work on the new site, which it says it expects to raise in the next two or three months.

The charity is hoping to move in August and open to the public the following month.

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