Crowdfunder to save horse therapy centre
A HORSE therapy centre facing closure if it fails to find a new home by the end of June has launched a crowdfunding appeal to help pay for new premises.
Social enterprise project The Way of the Horse currently operates from rented land and stables on Church Street, Earl Shilton, but has been given notice by the landlord to vacate the site before July 1.
Its five rescue horses and a 23-year-old Shetland pony are used to help clients with conditions including ADHD, autism, anxiety and depression, as well as victims of abuse.
Director Dina Hooton said: “Our clients can build an enduring relationship with our horses that can be a struggle for them to manage with other people.
“Potentially being homeless and unable to continue our work is a real worry.”
Ideally, the project needs more than seven acres of land, with stabling for at least six horses. The team had hoped to find somewhere to rent but is now considering having to purchase a base to ensure its work can continue.
A crowdfunding page has been set up in a bid to generate money for a deposit and towards any eventual cost.
Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council’s Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) Commissioning Board, which recently assessed the organisation, described it as “a unique project delivering therapeutic activities to some of the most vulnerable clients across our borough”.
The Way of the Horse co-director Dr Emma Lethbridge said: “If we don’t find a new home, all of these children, the children’s families and many vulnerable adults, will find themselves without the support they rely on.”
She added: “We also offer a home for rescued horses who would otherwise face an uncertain future.
“Having been saved by The Way of the Horse, our rescued horses are now helping to save people.
“Through the crowdfunder we are requesting donations, however small, to put towards the purchase, lease or mortgage of a permanent premises.”
To help crowdfund for a new base for The Way of the Horse visit www.crowdfunder.co.uk/save-the-way-of-thehorse-therapy-centre
Anyone able to help in any other way or who may have suitable premises to offer is urged to contact Dina Hooton on 07714 269218 or to email thewayofthehorse2015@gmail.com