livery yard for disabled owners

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rips01

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Hi everyone im seriously thinking of opening a livery yard for disabled people and people with learning difficultys who own their own horses.Ive worked in the care proffession for over four years and own two horses and would love to combine the two. I was hopeing for some feed back please.Many many thanks x
 
My only feedback would be in the form of questions you need to ask yourself:

Where are you?
Is there a demand?)genuine demand that needs to be met or 1 or 2 people who said in passing it might be a good idea?)
Do disabled people want to be 'segregated' on their own yard?
Does RDA cater for their needs already? (or is it RDA your area is missing?)
Do you have the relevant experience in the environment? (ie not in the care sector strictly)
Would insurance/equipment needs be prohibitively expensive?
Would you then have to charge prohibitively expensive prices?
Why do you want to do it? (there is no money really to be had running a yard these days)

Just my instant thoughts, hope they are not too negative/patronising :)

Good luck if you decide to go ahead :)
 
I think this sounds like an excellent idea. A lot of the yards round our way are totally inaccessible to those who are physicsllh handicapped.
Whilst I don't doubt your experience and enthusiasm I can see a potential risk with your plan. You aim to target a very specific, very small aspect of the equine industry and my.worry would be that this would be too restrictive. Yards cost stupid amounts of money to run.
It might be better to have s yard set up that is fully inclusive to cater for all clients rather than just those with physical of mental handicaps.
X
 
I think this potentially is a great idea, my suggestion would be to contact your local RDA centres and also BD para to gain some feedback from them about their client's needs and wants.
 
i have autistic children, it's hard trying to find a yard that can/will accept them as they do have a different way of seeing/doing/saying things and sometimes go into their own little world.
one yard i was on they got picked on by adults and called some disgusting names, it was upsetting for them and myself.
another place took advantage of them, they always try to please so the other liveries would get them to do all the jobs for them and my kids would think it's great because they were helping.
if there was a yard that happily accepted my kids for who they are then i would go there in a heartbeat. it's not just a physically disabled person that has problems on a yard, it's other disabilities and also the kids of the horse riders/owners that need somewhere to go.

i think it would be a good idea but only if you can cater for the different types of disabilities.
 
Thank u for your opinions very helpful to me Riding high im so sorry ur children have been treated like that its disgracefull no exscuse what so ever. Im in surrey and do have a clue what im doing ive cared for disabled people for four years,care for a 38 year old lady with learning difficultie sand
 
Sorry pressed wrong button lol
And her horse have done for two years and ive been going swimming with disabled,stroke,m s,brain damage,blind and paralysed people for nearly four years.I also own two horses a nurotic anglo arab chetnut
 
O bloody hell done it again
And breaking my 3year old filly. I feel from a disabled point of view i would rather be round people simular to me and round someone who can do Personal Care (toilet ext)for me. Im not in it for the Money i just was to Help as i appreciate the struggles people suffer.
 
I think a yard that isn't specifically for disabled people, but has a strong ethos of accessibility and support and if course zero tolerance of bad attitudes would be great. Although not technically disabled I'm sure there are a large number of older adults like me who have health problems and need a lot of support at times, so that's a potential market as well.

Paula
 
I would try and get help from the RDA - I am sure they will give you lots of advice.

I'm sure you're aware of the expenses involved, i can imagine they'd be pretty high (also insurance).. special ramps, maybe a hydraulic lift, lots of staff around, all that sort of thing.

Yup, RDA to start with :)
 
My young sons autistic , he sticks his fingers up and says things ge dosnt know the meaning ( I try and go when yard not busy , and choose quieter yards I think its a good idea ! Riding for disabled centres are very commercial and expensive . Maybe a lovely little yard , not too many gimmicks would be great , good idea!
 
I'm disabled both hips dislocated which means I have atrocious balance and really struggle with uneven ground, get tired very quickly and can't walk any distance so use a mobility scooter etc.
We run a large livery yard which my Dad has 'Lizzie proofed' we have lights everywhere so that I can see any obstacles and the yard is all concreted and on one level etc.
All the fields are within a short distance of the stables as is the muck heep.
From a personal point of view I would never of wanted to be on a yard just for disabled people as I don't like to be singled out however I do need extra help and consideration so a yard which can offer that and more thoughful planning is always a good thing.
 
I think your best market would be a really inclusive yard, where people can unashamedly ask for help when they need it.
I have severe carpal tunnel in both hands, with significant nerve damage, i only need help with specific things, but would love to on a yard where I could ask for help and not be seen as lazy or stupid ( as I have been accused of inthe past).
And yes, I would be prepared to pay a small premium for that inclusive attitude.
 
It's very much a case of wanting to do as much as you can, as often as you can, but needing to be in the position of someone else being available if you can't. I have weeks on end when I'm fully capable of doing DIY and would dearly love to help out at my livery, but when I'm less well I need to concentrate my energy on my job. I really need a kind of fully flexible livery where I'm just charged full for when I need it. But I can see how that might be difficult to provide.

Paula
 
My initial reaction is:

What proportion of potential livery clients are disabled?

What is the general demand for livery places in your area?

Whilst there do seem to be areas where livery places are hard to find, there are just as many, if not more where livery places are numerous and yards have trouble filling them. If you are also going to restrict your intake to a particular group of people, then it may become even harder for you to run it as a business. Nice idea though.
 
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