HRH The Duchess of Cornwall met with the members of the equestrian community in Brixton, London, yesterday (21st July 2010) at an Open Day of the Ebony Horse Club charity of which she is President.
Her visit included a tour of the area in Wyck Gardens that, once approximately £500,000 is raised, is destined to become stabling, a riding school, and a classroom for members of the Club, right in the centre of one of the most challenging places to live in London.
The British Equestrian Federation, of which the Duchess is a patron, has already committed some £200,000 of finance secured through Sport England, to the £1.7million project.
Andrew Finding of the BEF gave an impromptu, impassioned speech as to just why the BEF were so keen to endorse and support this project as part of its HOOF Ride London, Olympic Legacy Project.
He said, “The Club is proven to change lives and has the capacity, through this proposed riding school, to reach many more children. By being involved at this level, our sport will hit into the heart of London and, in light of the London 2012 Olympic Games, make a lasting difference.”
“I urge all in our sport to join us and pledge their support to the Club”, he added, with the Club grateful of donations, great and small.
Saroj Chakravarty, a patron of many Royal charities and his wife Mandirar, were so inspired they made a donation to the Club on the day – Saroj having retired from international business to support principally, The Prince’s Trust, leading to HRH The Prince of Wales, naming international polo match, The Chakravarty Cup, in his honour.
Equestrian enthusiasts in attendance included Rosemary Barlow, who won the BHS Queen’s Award for Equestrianism this year for her fundraising activities via the Horse Trials Support Group and for her part in building relationships and greater understanding throughout the whole equine community.
The premise of using horses to teach five key social skills; punctuality, regular attendance, commitment to improvement, team work and exam preparation, in order to achieve beyond their expectations, struck a chord and she was joined by fellow event horse owner, Ann Walkinshaw, daughter-in-law of Nick Walkinshaw, the owner of Billy Shannon, ridden by Pippa Funnell.
Sir David Steel and his wife, Charlotte, were also among those present – Charlotte having been known to drive the minibus that currently takes the members across London to their riding lessons, and during the open day she demonstrated how to put on a tail bandage on the Club’s plastic horse.
And, Lady Heseltine, being introduced to the Club for the first time, spoke of how she felt inspired to offer the Club a chance to visit and ride from her farm in Exmoor.
Such an opportunity would be a world away from the stables, surrounded as it will be, by high-rise residential buildings that are home to many of the Ebony Horse Club’s members – children from the age of 12-19 – who are readily exposed to poverty, poor educational achievement, social exclusion and crime.
In the days running up to the Open Day, five children were involved in a shooting incident, and the families of the members and those involved in the local community spoke of how the Club has turned the lives of many children otherwise branded, ‘too difficult’, around.
It was also noted that, although to the country equestrian community, the costs involved in building and running such a Club may seem high, it would inspire the area to be regenerated, prevent crime and was cheaper, per capita, than holding a child in a youth detention centre while also offering them much needed opportunities and a way out, with many former Club members going on to University and even careers in the equine industry.
