Each month we do a month in numbers summarising what we’ve got up to. Just ahead of October’s, we share September’s with you, and explain how this translates into the impact on the lives of the people who cross our path.
In September we welcomed 224 participants, held 417 riding sessions, 53 in carriage driving, 298 in ground work, 310 in horse care and 30 in equine therapy. We visited one care home, welcomed three new horses, celebrated one birthday (Dan), and still found time to be out and about in Stow (carriage driving training), the Rose Theatre in Kingston, and Kempton Park racecourse as part of a project with Racing Together.
Numbers can be impressive, but if they don’t change anything, they’re meaningless. So our focus is always firmly on the impact of what we do. Feedback from sessions tells us that they help with everything from balance to confidence, from concentration in the classroom to overall wellbeing, and from friendships to respite. They become a treasured slice of ‘normal’ for participants and their families and carers. Riding improves balance, muscle tone and confidence; stable skills and horse care give participants a sense of really being a member of the team and interacting with the wisdom of horses.
And this is at the heart of what these numbers mean in reality. For every participant there are parents, carers, and/or siblings who get a break from their caring responsibilities to share the happiness of their loved one in the moment.
What will October’s month in numbers look like? Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to find out.