A long-awaited drive!
Archie, our new driving pony, is settling into his new role magnificently and can now be seen trotting across the Wyfold Estate or along the speed bumps and taking it all in his stride. We have capacity for 12 drivers now that all of our driving coaches have been signed off and we are currently at 9, so places are filling up fast.
Here is our very first drive back with David Walker who has been extremely patient waiting for us to get back up and running! He absolutely loved it, thoroughly enjoying the freedom and speed of driving Archie with our coaches Jane O’Donald and Loraine Maidment all around the estate.
Successes at the National Championships
In May, four of our riders participated in the South Regional Qualifiers and qualified for the RDA National Championships, which took place at Hartpury University in Gloucestershire during the weekend of the 11th of July. It was a super-hot weekend and we knew our ageing ponies wouldn’t manage the journey, so we were lucky enough to be able to borrow 3 ponies from our National Office and training centre in Warwickshire.
We took the four qualifiers to meet the ponies in advance and paired up Lottie Walker with Gareth, Lucas Adams and Skye Carter Brennan with Blue, and Ffion Jones competed on Aimee (a previous Nationals winner – no pressure Fffion!).
See more photos in the Gallery
Despite the heat, despite having only sat on these ponies once before and despite the huge atmosphere of the event, our riders did brilliantly. We couldn’t have been more proud of them. Lucas won his class, Lottie came 6th, Ffion 8th and Skye 9th. And that’s across the entire UK. Congratulations to all of them and here you can see them in action.
Welcome to our two newest recruits
One of our most treasured assets is our wonderful Yard Manager, Elizabeth.
She looks after the welfare of our ponies ensuring that everyone is fit and healthy, which includes managing feed and access to grass; balancing RDA lessons with hacking out for exercise and interest; and maintaining health records and supervising vet and farrier visits.
Here she is working with two of our newest recruits, Elsie and Maggie, helping them to settle into their new home and getting them used to life at Wyfold.
Introducing RDA Equipment
This is Elsie being introduced to a net which we use when playing games in lessons.
Riders challenge themselves by leaning forwards or stretching to reach the net so they can drop an object into it. Exercises like this help improve their balance and posture, as well as getting them used to the various different movements required when riding – and games make it fun!
Each time a new pony joins us, we spend a long time making sure they are familiar with the equipment, before they are allowed to have someone riding them.
Preparation for the 2025 National Championships
Preparation for the 2025 RDA National Championships is well underway at Team Wyfold!
We are borrowing some lovely ponies from Lowlands Equestrian Centre to take some stress off our own wonderful horse team. So, on Wednesday, we headed up to RDA National Office to practice the dressage on our riders’ mounts for the real deal!
Keep an eye on our socials to follow the journey and excitement of the National Championships! This is a massive achievement for our riders and we can’t wait to watch them compete!
Winner! Young Coach of the Year Award
Congratulations to Katy Lake, who has won the Young Coach of the Year Award!
Katy says:
“I am beyond honoured to be awarded a Young Coach of the Year 2025 award! RDA has become a huge part of my life over the last few years, and even whilst I’m away at university getting my degree, I am looking forward to coming home and teaching. I feel my riders’ successes as if they are my own and it is a pleasure to find ways to make them smile and help them achieve their goals!”
Award Nominations for our Volunteers
Following on from our success at the Regionals, we have more good news to share!
A number of our volunteers have been nominated and shortlisted for the RDA UK Annual Awards.
- Adrienne has been shortlisted for Coach Mentor of the Year.
- Diane has been shortlisted for Coach Mentor of the Year and the Extra Mile Award.
- Katy has been shortlisted for the Young Coach of the Year award.
- Kim was nominated for the Volunteer of the Year award.
Watch this space to see how our nominees do!
Success at the South Region Qualifiers Day
What an amazing day we had at the South Region Competition in May. We took 7 riders and 3 ponies, which is the most we have for years.
See more photos in the Gallery
Everyone had a wonderful time and really enjoyed themselves, and every one of our entrants was placed in their classes. Well done to riders Fiona, Sky, Lottie and Lucas who have all qualified to attend the National Championships in July.
An absolutely massive thank you to the amazing team that was behind this wonderful day and worked tirelessly to make it happen. It takes huge effort and patience to get that many riders and ponies ready and in the right places at the right time!
An even bigger thanks to our wonderful ponies, Pluto, Wynne and Darcey, who tried their hearts out for their riders.
Royal Garden Party
Congratulations to one of our Trustees, Adrienne Heriot, who was thanked for her many years of work at RDA by being nominated to attend a Royal Garden Party at Buckingham Palace.
See more photos in the Gallery
Adrienne was nominated for this community accolade for making a substantial difference to the lives of people in Oxfordshire. She has been involved with Wyfold RDA for over 25 years, becoming qualified as a Senior Instructor and taking on the role of Chair of the Trustees for several years. Since stepping down from the position of Chair, she has continued to support the charity as a Trustee and can be seen at the yard every week, come rain or shine.
Adrienne attended the Garden Party, which was hosted by the Prince and Princess of Wales on behalf of the King, with her husband, Ian. Ian has been a tremendous support to Wyfold over the years, providing advice, hours and hours of practical help and a lot of phone answering!
Adrienne said, “I’m thrilled to have been invited to the Palace, but making Wyfold run as it does is a team effort; I accepted the invitation as an acknowledgement of the work that everyone does, not just me.”
John Ackroyd Charitable Trust
Huge thanks to Richard Mott, a director from the John Ackroyd Charitable Trust, who came to see us in action today in the sunshine.
Not only did he manage to repair a gate on his visit, but he also handed over a whopping cheque of £3,000.
It’s the generosity of organisations like this that keep us afloat.
Family Fun Day – THANK YOU!!
Thank you to everyone who came to our Family Fun Day. Entry was free to all, with games and stalls, tractor rides, a barbecue, and tea and cakes. There were lots of plants for sale too!
We managed to raise over £2,300, which goes towards the upkeep of the ponies and maintenance of our wonderful facilities.
We hope you all enjoyed the day!
The Countryside Challenge
Our Saturday riders had great fun going round our countryside challenge course.
This course is designed to simulate what you may find out hacking. It helps riders prepare for the different obstacles they might encounter when riding out through the woods and tracks around the yard.
With the sun and blue sky today, what better day to be out and about!
Poppy’s Pampering Session
Unfortunately, despite our best rehab efforts, Poppy is still not sound enough to work, so we have taken her shoes off and are giving her a few months’ total field rest.
This means that she will only come in for a pampering once a week and will spend the rest of the time resting her feet in the field.
Ebony gets used to RDA games
It was a big learning day for Ebony as she did her first proper session in the school with all the RDA equipment.
As expected, she was absolutely chilled about all the equipment, however she was very disappointed that there was nothing to be found in the buckets for her to eat!
Meet rider Skye
For 10-year-old Skye, the best part of RDA is the people.
Skye loves going on hacks and riding Pluto—she feels it has really helped her progress. She said:
“My favourite horse is Pluto because he’s amazing to ride and has helped me so much with my progression. My favourite activity? Going for hacks and cantering—it’s the best!”
Regular riding improves core strength, balance, and coordination, while our supportive groups help combat isolation and bring joy to so many lives.
Joe and Bob enjoy a hack
Joe and Bob have enjoyed a lovely, gentle hack today!
Poor Bob has been struggling with some arthritis in his legs recently, not helped by the bad weather, but he’s slowly managing to do some small amounts of work and a gentle hack once a week, and it’s certainly lifting his spirits.
Bring on the warm, dry weather to make him feel better.
Hugo receives Grade 2 Horse Care certificate
We had a very special visitor at Wyfold today.
Michael Bishop, CEO of RDA National, came to visit and awarded some of our riders with their grade certificates that they’ve been working incredibly hard towards over the last few months.
Here is Hugo receiving his Grade 2 Horse Care certificate with his favourite pony, Sweet Pea!
The ponies have a ‘snow day’!
Snow and ice on the ground means the ground is frozen, so no lessons and a day off for the ponies!
Hopefully, the sun will melt it all away and we can get some lessons in tomorrow, but for now, they are enjoying the sun and mooching about in the snow.