Cry for HELP! for Kent/ London Riding Schools

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Lam

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Desperate for help, please!

Has anyone been to one of those riding school? Could you kindly makes some comments on them?
Kent:
Chelsfield Equestrian Centre- Orpington
Mount Mascal Stables- Bexley ( not the old Bexley riding school)
London:
Lee Valley Regional Park Authority- Leyton
Newham Riding School & Association- Beckton
Willowtree Riding Establishment- Lee

Much appreciate with your time! =)
 
Try adding on to tack room frolics
This is a south east based site and know many people that either ride or use to ride at riding schools
 
Lam said:
Desperate for help, please!

Has anyone been to one of those riding school? Could you kindly makes some comments on them?
Kent:
Chelsfield Equestrian Centre- Orpington
Mount Mascal Stables- Bexley ( not the old Bexley riding school)
London:
Lee Valley Regional Park Authority- Leyton
Newham Riding School & Association- Beckton
Willowtree Riding Establishment- Lee

Much appreciate with your time! =)
Click to expand...

There's a recent thread about Willowtree on this forum (I think it was listed as Willow Tree). Hth!
 
I was unfortunate enough to witness very bad horsemanship from kids competing on behalf of Mount Mascals at a pony clus sj competition earlier this year.Lots of kids kicking with spurs,flapping arms and whipping their ponies,who were simply trying their best.In the jump off the ponies could honestly go no faster,but still the kids behaviour persisted.If this is how Mount Mascals teach,and condone this behaviour I would seriously give them a miss.One of the kids fell of when her pony refused because she was beating it around the neck as she approached the jump,thus putting the poor creature off.Guess who got the blame?
 
Re: Wundahorse
Thank you for your information. It is a shame that it happened in Mount Mascals. I was thought to give it a check out, or may go there for schooling, but now seems they have awful teaching method/ without respect horses/ ponies.
Have you been to other riding schools which might seems good to learn from?
Or
Where did you learn from?
Many thanks
 
Of those I have only ridden at Mount Mascals and can reassure you that what the above user has said is not at all indicitive of the teaching there. In fact someone I know went for a lesson there on their own horse as they wanted to introduce spurs and were told not to and given schooling exercises instead. It is, however, very busy especially at weekends whereas I prefer somewhere a bit quieter for 121 attention.

If you are looking for somewhere quieter and want 121 attention I recommend Timbertops. It is a small RS on the road that runs from Sidcup to Swanley. It has two schools and only a few teachers. When you book a private lesson you get sole use of the school so you are not going round other lessons/riders. I learnt more in just a couple of lessons there then I learnt in months elsewhere. I had Natalie but I have also heard great things about the other instructor as well.
 
Re: biccie1
Very limited online resourse for Timbertops. Do you mind to answer a few questions?
When you say they have two schools, does it means one indoor and outdoor? Did you have same instructor for most of your lesson with them?
Many thanks.
 
Re: SusannaF
Just realize that Chelsfied prices are quite high?! They charge one to one £30 for 30 minutes. Would you reckon is rather expensive or ok? Sorry, I m a newbies in this field, don't have much knowledge on these. Many thanks!
 
Timbertops have two schools - both outdoors. I rode there throughout winter and the schools were usable (unlike some outdoors). You always have the same instructor (unless of course you want to change). They have a good range of horses to ride. I haven't been in about a year or so but from memory it is around £30 for an hour private lesson.
 
I used to ride and work at Chelsfield 10 years ago but have visited more recently as it changed ownership in the last few years - they've done it up really nicely :) The school horses and ponies are always in great condition and not overworked, good selection too. I had lessons from one of their instructors way back and really liked her style of teaching, but can't help with the others. One of their freelances is always v highly recommended though so I would say if you got her for the 30mins for £30 private lesson you were doing well! :)

I have not ridden at Mascals but kept horses locally and so hacked past/went to competitions there. No clue on the standard of teaching etc but it is always v v busy and I was shocked at the number of kids / ponies packed into a group lesson. :o If you can go during the daytime in the week for 121 tuition you may be ok though?
 
Won't touch mount mascal or timbertops personally.
In no partical order i find the following very worrying- Ragwart/no grass/strangles/employing teenage school girls to teach. Other stable management details.
I'm not going to say which one is guilty of what but i just won't give them any money.
I've heard good things about Chelsfield but have no experiance of them.
 
I ride at Mount Mascals once a week, on the weekend. It's a big riding school, with 50+ ponies and horses to suit all abilities. I would say that Mascals is extremely child friendly, and it definitely does get busy on weekends, but that is not surprising as it is has such lovely surroundings (Joydens Wood is used for hacking). It does not have the silly £90 an hour costs that the riding schools do in Central London, so if you are a Londoner wanting fairly cheap riding then Mount Mascals is a good suggestion as it is very easy to get to.

If you are an adult wanting a private lesson, the best time would be to go in the week, as I said, it gets very busy at the weekend.

I see slightly where Wundahorse is coming from, however we are never taught to give the pony a beating. We are however, encouraged to use the whip on lazy ponies, if they are not responding to a squeeze around the girth area. If it hurt the ponies, we would not use the whip. Wundahorse may have been referring to the liveries who stable their ponies there, which in that case cannot be used against the instructors as the liveries may not have lessons.

All of the ponies and horses are well cared for. If you have read some of the reviews online, some of them say that the ponies look thin and scruffy. In the winter, the ponies grow coats, so none of them are going to look like shining show ponies as Mascals have many native breeds. All of the horses are offered water at the end of each lesson, and the helpers at the yard (of which there are many), offer water to the ponies tied to the fence. The ponies are loving and friendly and do their job extremely well.

The instructors are knowledgeable and friendly, who definitely know their job. The teaching is to a very high standard. Each lesson is different, we maybe do jumping one week, hacking the next, and are encouraged to assess how our pony is going (i.e is it responsive, is it overbending in circles etc).

I wanted to give you a point of view from a person who attends Mascals regularly. Good luck in finding a riding school that you like :)
 
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First of all, Big Thanks to all responed people. These information are very helpful for me to narrow down the numbers of school.
At the moment, I would put Mount Muscal, Timbertops, and Chelsfield under a good consideration & have a visit.
Would anybody has any experience from those, please kindly share the thoughts.
RE Duckling, Do you mind to telling me who the highly recommand instructor you are talking about, if you found this might sensitive, would you please PM me.

Big Thanks!
Hugs
 
I witnessed a horrific incident at mount mascal during the holidays last week. There was a total of 34 horses and ponies in the school at one time, it was a group lesson and there were young children, around 10 yrs old leading two horses at a time!!! One young girl was trying to run, holding onto the bridles no lead reins) trying to get the horses to trot, with that both horses started to have a kick up the middle of this poor little dot, and the very small novice child aboard lost balance from the horses kicking, fell off into the middle of them and got kicked in the back. She was screaming for ages and the ''instructor'' was was a child herself proceeded to tell the child to get up as it was only a little bump! I explained i had seen what had happened and that the child had been kicked due to the lack if responsibility on her behalf. I think it is dispicable that this sort of thing is happening in this day and age. The riding school were more concerned about the cash and not that there were too many horses with inexperienced horse people because they are too tight to pay for proper people. What happened to the bhs safety? And the horses, well they were half dead and most needed urgent medical treatment. One Little hadji get had such a bad cough it could hardly breathe, and instead of taking it out, they proceeded to hit it with a lunge whip to make it go faster! There was also a poor chestnut whose back end looked as though it belonged to another horse. What I saw on this day was beyond disgusting and I of course reported this matter to the relavant organsiations. Id you are looking for a good riding school then I recommend taking your mine some where else to ensure your child will come back in one piece. Cobham manor are very good but pricey.
 
Mwill, I'll try to reassure you by saying that once I was riding a mare who started coughing and had snot coming from her nostril, I was issued straight off her and onto another horse as the instructor was concerned for her health.

Also that chestnut that I *think* you are talking about has very bad confirmation in his fetlocks. Is that what you saw? Therefore, he is not allowed to do much jumping as it's bad for his fetlocks.

This is just to try and reassure you that Mount Mascals do care for their horses. I hope you have a better experience there in the future.
 
I witnessed a horrific incident at mount mascal during the holidays last week. There was a total of 34 horses and ponies in the school at one time, it was a group lesson and there were young children, around 10 yrs old leading two horses at a time!!! One young girl was trying to run, holding onto the bridles no lead reins) trying to get the horses to trot, with that both horses started to have a kick up the middle of this poor little dot, and the very small novice child aboard lost balance from the horse kicking, fell off into the middle of them and got kicked in the back. She was screaming for ages and the ''instructor'' was was a child herself proceeded to tell the child to get up as it was only a little bump! I explained i had seen what had happened and that the child had been kicked due to the lack of responsibility on her behalf. She then argued with me that the little girl did not kick her, and some lemonade will do the trick!! Appauling. The staff here do not have a clue. I think it is despicable that this sort of thing is happening in this day and age. The riding school are more concerned about the cash and not that there were too many horses with inexperienced horse people because they are too tight to pay for proper people. I would imagine the 'helpers' leading the horses around had to pay for the priviledge to dice with death! What happened to the bhs safety? The horses were half dead and most needed urgent medical treatment. One poor little haflinger had such a bad cough it could hardly breathe, and instead of taking it out of the lessons and get the vet, they proceeded to hit it with a lunge whip to make it go forward! There was also a poor chestnut whose back end looked as though it belonged to another horse. What I saw on this day was beyond disgusting and I of course reported this matter to the relavant organsiations. If you are looking for a good riding school then I recommend taking your mine some where else to ensure your child will come back in one piece. Cobham manor are very good but pricey - You cannot put a price on safety. I really hope mount mascal do something about this before a tradegy happens.
 
lilyoftheincas said:
Mwill, I'll try to reassure you by saying that once I was riding a mare who started coughing and had snot coming from her nostril, I was issued straight off her and onto another horse as the instructor was concerned for her health.

Also that chestnut that I *think* you are talking about has very bad confirmation in his fetlocks. Is that what you saw? Therefore, he is not allowed to do much jumping as it's bad for his fetlocks.

This is just to try and reassure you that Mount Mascals do care for their horses. I hope you have a better experience there in the future.
Click to expand...

Hi lilyoftheincas, the horse that was coughing very bad was a haflinger. When you visit the riding school are there 34 horse together in the school being led by children that do not know anything about horses? It is very very dangerous and somebody could get seriously hurt.
 
Hello :) As I said in mine, it gets extremely busy at weekends. In the summer, when the paddocks are dry and safe to ride in, some groups go in there so it is less busy. I definitely agree that in winter the indoor school is very busy and sometimes dangerous.

However, you may be pleased to know that whenever anyone falls off, the whole school stops, so the pony doesn't get encouraged to be frightened. I have been in that situation myself and the whole ordeal was dealt with very professionally. I fell off a few days ago, and even though I didn't hurt myself at all, and I more slid off than fell off (the horse I was riding refused a jump and I was too far gone to try and stay in the saddle!!), I still had to fill in an accident form.

The helpers, who lead beginners and do odd jobs around the place, are given a helper instruction session every week (I think). I think that some of these girls are very keen yet do not know that much.
 
Re: Mwill thank you for your message, that's a really important that to takes all the comments into account. It is real shame that Mount Mascles has such a negative feedback. I m much appreciated with your effoct.
 
Yes it is a real shame as has so much potential there what with the location and being so close to London. If only they could put some money into younger, healthier and safer ponies and employ proper trained and qualified staff, rather than a few non-horsey school children and jumped up teenagers who think they know everything. I think the problem here is too many non-horsey customers who live in London and they don't realise how dangerous the conditions are. All the time the riding school are having their pockets linded with oodles of $ in the current climate then they wont do anything about it which is a very sad and dangeorus situation :-(
 
You could not pay me enough to go to Mascals, please if you want a good enjoyable lesson avoid! I had a lesson there just to see what it was like and ride other horses before exams and it was beyond shocking!! The other riders had no idea on school rules and one young girl crashed straight into me, the horses then started kicking each other, rearing , spinning etc, the girl on the other horse was crying her eyes out and was really only young and the fabulous instructors stood together drinking tea chatting and then my instructor shouted out to me to pick up canter in the next corner!!!! Needless to say i got off the horse narrowly missing flying hooves pulled my horse away, gave it to the instructor who was looking confused as to why I did this, went back and got the other girl off and took her to her mum who was also in hysterics at this point! What a great place!!

Ive heard good things about Chelsfield and Bedgebury though, I'm going to hopefully try Bedgebury soon with my friend as she wont ride either of mine and I like to be nosey!!

Hope you find somewhere!
 
Re: Mwill thank you for your message, that's a really important that to takes all the comments into account. It is real shame that Mount Mascles has such a negative feedback. I m much appreciated with your effoct.
 
It is such horror to hear such awful news but those are very important. Safety have to come first. I was such a great hope to give a chance for Mount Mascals, but it seems they aren't quite ready yet.
Really pleased to all of you are so generously sharing your knowledge with me.
Big smile :D
 
I competed at chelsfield (about 10 years ago) and enjoyed it. Nice horses aand nice location.
I posted in the willowtree thread if you look through my post history. I visited lee valley once to see horseball and liked the look of the horses and surroundings but instructors have told me teaching aint up to much (their words not mine) apparently they let the kids think they're more advanced than they are.
I've also heard bad things about mount mascals but what put my mum off ever taking me there as a child was us nearly being trampled underfoot by 6 or 7 shrieking kids galloping about woods hitting and urging the ponies on with no regard for their safety, horses welfare or people who were also using the wood. His is going back 15 years or so but the memory always pu. Me off going there. t
 
Sorry - phone is being stupid - hope that all made sense!
Have you considered mudchute farm? It has a waiting list but I feel that I've learnt loads from there! They tore me to shreds at the start (nicely) but now I feel my position is loads better (being guilty of carrying my hands low and bad feet/lower leg position) and made me a much better rider because of it!
 
Re: Karran
Thank you for your kindness. I would not take Mount Mascals at this moment. As they seem has no idea of safety!? That would end up with some really sad story one day.
Chelsfieds is seems to be a very good school should try but considering their price, I might need to work out for a longer term, maybe do private as well as have a hire for self practice( if they have one)?
Mudchute farm was taken in a consideration however I called them last time they were not able to take any further student nor on the waiting list. What s shame!
 
Re: Jo_currie
Went to Bedgebury's website, it is pricey for private but for group lesson seems to be more acceptable as only three rider in a group n not charging that much.
Unfortunately, Goudhurst is a bit far for me to travel.
However, it seems to be a very beautiful place to ride.
 
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