Newsletter
Princess Royal on call with RDA members
(July 15, 2020)
Press release
July 2020
Princess Royal on call with RDA members
Riders and volunteers talk about the impact of lockdown and plans for reopening
The Princess Royal has held a virtual meeting with members of Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA). Her Royal Highness is President of the charity, which delivers therapy through horses to disabled children and adults throughout the UK. With all RDA groups closed, The Princess Royal was heard about the challenges faced by the charity, as well as the impact this prolonged closure is having on members.
On the call with The Princess Royal were members of the staff and volunteer working group who have been making plans for the reopening of RDA centres when the time is right, as well as a rider and parent, who both shared their experiences of being unable to access RDA during this time.
Reflecting on the impact that lockdown is having on RDA riders, The Princess Royal said: “Anything like this will I hope increase the argument that this is not an optional extra, or just a kind of fun for many of them. It really means something to their ability to live their lives.”
[Our own Karen Thompson was part of this meeting as a member of the working group. She spoke about the effort that had gone into planning how Kesteven Rideability might be able to reopen and how it had worked to enable its clients to keep in contact with the group during the early days of the pandemic by the use of social media. As the rules on social distancing were relaxed the group were able to institute a phased return with the introduction of a new “quiet area” which enables riders to come and spend time with their pony whilst they are waiting to be able to begin riding again. The area also enables clients to take part in carriage driving theory sessions. She said that whilst we can’t offer our therapy sessions to our elderly clients just yet we have been engaging in virtual sessions via Zoom. These have been well received and again enable our elderly clients to keep in touch with us and with the horse and ponies they love to visit.]
The Princess Royal heard about the ways that normal RDA sessions are being adapted to help some groups open to a few riders, and suggested some ideas for new activities that groups could try to help them restart while social distancing measures remain in place.
RDA UK Director of Operations, Claire Milican, has been leading the working group looking at ways RDA groups can restart safely, and was on the call to update The Princess Royal on their plans. “The Princess Royal has a deep understanding of how RDA works, so she knows what challenges our groups are facing,” she said. “It was great to hear that she shares our enthusiasm for helping groups to get going again and suggested that long-lining – where you steer the horse by walking behind it using long reins – could be a good option. This is an idea we are looking into and it just shows how well The Princess Royal knows the issues and opportunities open to us.”
With many groups struggling financially without regular income or fundraising events, RDA is launching a second phase of nationwide fundraising. The ‘Resilience’ campaign reflects the differing needs of groups around the UK: those in immediate financial risk, those adapting their services during lockdown and those planning for restart.
For more information and to donate to the campaign visit www.rda.org.uk.
Press release
July 2020
Princess Royal on call with RDA members
Riders and volunteers talk about the impact of lockdown and plans for reopening
The Princess Royal has held a virtual meeting with members of Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA). Her Royal Highness is President of the charity, which delivers therapy through horses to disabled children and adults throughout the UK. With all RDA groups closed, The Princess Royal was heard about the challenges faced by the charity, as well as the impact this prolonged closure is having on members.
On the call with The Princess Royal were members of the staff and volunteer working group who have been making plans for the reopening of RDA centres when the time is right, as well as a rider and parent, who both shared their experiences of being unable to access RDA during this time.
Reflecting on the impact that lockdown is having on RDA riders, The Princess Royal said: “Anything like this will I hope increase the argument that this is not an optional extra, or just a kind of fun for many of them. It really means something to their ability to live their lives.”
[Our own Karen Thompson was part of this meeting as a member of the working group. She spoke about the effort that had gone into planning how Kesteven Rideability might be able to reopen and how it had worked to enable its clients to keep in contact with the group during the early days of the pandemic by the use of social media. As the rules on social distancing were relaxed the group were able to institute a phased return with the introduction of a new “quiet area” which enables riders to come and spend time with their pony whilst they are waiting to be able to begin riding again. The area also enables clients to take part in carriage driving theory sessions. She said that whilst we can’t offer our therapy sessions to our elderly clients just yet we have been engaging in virtual sessions via Zoom. These have been well received and again enable our elderly clients to keep in touch with us and with the horse and ponies they love to visit.]
The Princess Royal heard about the ways that normal RDA sessions are being adapted to help some groups open to a few riders, and suggested some ideas for new activities that groups could try to help them restart while social distancing measures remain in place.
RDA UK Director of Operations, Claire Milican, has been leading the working group looking at ways RDA groups can restart safely, and was on the call to update The Princess Royal on their plans. “The Princess Royal has a deep understanding of how RDA works, so she knows what challenges our groups are facing,” she said. “It was great to hear that she shares our enthusiasm for helping groups to get going again and suggested that long-lining – where you steer the horse by walking behind it using long reins – could be a good option. This is an idea we are looking into and it just shows how well The Princess Royal knows the issues and opportunities open to us.”
With many groups struggling financially without regular income or fundraising events, RDA is launching a second phase of nationwide fundraising. The ‘Resilience’ campaign reflects the differing needs of groups around the UK: those in immediate financial risk, those adapting their services during lockdown and those planning for restart.
For more information and to donate to the campaign visit www.rda.org.uk