To ensure our horses and ponies' welfare is paramount, we have a strict weight limit of 14stone (88kg). We have predominently more smaller ponies than bigger horses and as such, anyone nearer to the weight limit will have horse allocation subject to availability.
A very useful guide to weight limits is available using this calculator
Not at all. We cater for all abilities, whether complete beginner or advanced rider. Complete beginners will be lead at all times by a trained competent and knowledgeable helper.
Children need to be 4 years old to begin formal riding lessons at SLS in our Mini group.
However, we do offer 'Trotting Tots' sessions for pre-school children on Mondays and Thursdays 9.30-11am. We offer adult lessons on Thursdays and Fridays 2-3pm.
Horses can sometimes be unpredictable and accidents occasionally happen. If your child should have any kind of accident, an Instructor will be on hand to assist them, implement First Aid if needed and/or get them back into their lesson. With any accident, however small, SLS will be required to complete an online accident form; this will be emailed to you for acknowledgement.
Each group session is two hours either in the morning (10am-12noon) or the afternoon (2pm-4pm) on Saturdays and Sundays. This includes stable management and riding. Sunday Mini's are at 2-2.45pm and Juniors immediately after at 2.45-3.15pm and these is available only for very young children/beginners.
Private lessons can be 30mins, 45mins or 1hr.
We change your horse regularly if we can. The reason for this is because you are learning to ride horses, not just a certain horse. Horses are like people and each one is different and has their own personality and quirks. We can offer you a safe way to experience different horses so that you will have the confidence to go on and ride whenever and wherever you can.
Yes - you will need to fill out the INITIAL online rider registration form which outlines the riders experience, height and weight so we can carry out a full assessment on the first lesson. This will also mean the allocation of horses is made automatically by the system. The system will ask you to update height/weight periodically.
SLS will not have lessons in the following weather: Driving Rain, High, 40+mph Wind, Snow, Thunder & Lightning Storms, Hail, Ice, Temperatures above 30℃ and Below 0℃. We do ride in light rain, blustery breezes and, when it appears, sunshine. However, we may continue with stable management lessons in unfavourable weather conditions.
This is the magic question. Honestly, your entire life. But for our purposes here, it really does depend on the rider. We would hope that a new Lead Rein rider would be out of that class by their 6th or 7th lesson and walking their horse on their own. We would also hope a Beginner rider would be able to walk and trot independently within 3 months on coming into the class. An Advanced Beginner who is learning to canter would take about the same amount of time. All this being said, it does depend on the rider and their drive, interest, and age. Nothing is set in stone. We move people into the correct lesson group as soon as they are able to safely and confidently show that they have the required skill for that level learned. We will always communicate with you regarding progress so that you are not in the dark about what is happening and what does need to be done next.
Your booking will detail 30 minutes riding however, this is only for the purposes of the horses' exercise. Your booking will be for the full two hours.
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