Park Lane Stables
Organisation/Service Details
Organisation Details
Description of activity
We have a number of different horse riding lessons and courses, suitable for children of all ages and abilities.
Riding lessons take place either in the beautiful surroundings of Bushy Park, which just a 5 minute walk from our yard in Teddington or alternatively we have an arena, a few minutes drive away, at our second yard in Hampton.
We also have a fantastic Pony Club, which takes place both in Teddington and in Hampton. We have a full calendar of events through the school holidays and our annual Pony Camp is always a huge success!
Riding for the Disabled Association
Natalie O'Rourke is the owner of Park Lane Stables and has a son with Down Syndrome. She has training in sign language and makaton, and actively seeks to offer opportunities to those with additional needs; amongst our team is young man on the autistic spectrum, a volunteer who is deaf, and a lady whose depression and anxiety has been dramatically reduced as a result of her time spend at the stables.
Charity Number: 1161306
The horses at Park Lane are kind, honest and steady, and make perfect companions for RDA riders. Equally comfortable introducing riders to the beauty of local Bushy Park, or working with them in the sand school, these carefully selected horses and ponies are accompanied on foot by friendly helpers, who thoughly enjoy leading and side helping those who need additional support.
We are a friendly and inclusive yard and warmly welcome RDA riders to join any of our regular riding sessions throughout the year. Half hour or hourly sessions can be easily arranged - just contact us to discuss your requirements and we will ensure they are matched to a ride suitable for the rider ability. The specially trained team at our unique suburban yard really do believe that it's what you can do that counts, and look forward to helping many more riders achieve their dreams in the years to come.
How can we help you?
We are part of a network of 500 groups across the UK that works as an official RDA group. Our horses and ponies provide invaluable therapy, achievement and enjoyment to people with disabilities in and around London. Volunteer groups, such as Park Lane Stables, organise activities such as riding, carriage driving, vaulting and show jumping.
All sessions are run by fully trained RDA instructors and friendly, DBS-checked volunteers to ensure participants have all the support they need.
We offer one-to-one and group lessons for children and adults with disabilities and learning difficulties at our arena in Hampton on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays during term-time. Sessions usually last for 30 minutes.
We also run a fun Adult RDA group at Teddington on Wednesdays from 2pm-4pm. Participants ride in Bushy Park for an hour and then take part in horse care and stable duties for an hour. Some participants choose not to ride and just like to help out in the stables.
We will also be offering Carriage Driving opportunities from January 2018 - a fun new skill for anyone to learn and be involved in, but it will be particularly beneficial for those who are unable to ride because of their disability. Our bespoke Carriage is wheelchair accessible and was built and kindly donated by our amazing sponsors, H&L Motors. We'd also like to thank the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames' Civic Pride Trust who have given us funding towards our new carriage driving horse and harness for this project. Please contact us if you are interested.
We may be able to offer physiotherapist-supported RDA sessions for adults and children who need physiotherapy support for their riding. If you think that you or your child may be eligible for this, please contact us for further information and please pass this information on if you think it would be relevant to somebody you know.
BRITISH BLIND SPORT: We are taking part in this project which, in partnership with RDA and British Blind Sport, is looking to engage more visually impaired riders. This is also open to anyone who has not ridden before. As part of this, we are offering free trials for visually-impaired children and adults who may want to try riding.
(Weight restriction: Please note that the maximum weight for riders, wearing hat, body protector etc is 13 stone/82.5kgs)
Please contact us for more information about our RDA provision: parklanestables@gmail.com