Raising a complaint with RS?

[tetij]

Hi, how would you raise with a riding school that you are unhappy about the way that an RS horse/pony was treated in a (not your) lesson? The rider was being instructed to smack the pony she was riding repeatedly and excessively (i.e. a smack 3-4 times each time, not just a flick with the whip) and the reason given by her instructor was that the pony was not listening to her leg aids. The rider was a child.

I was in a private lesson in the same arena with a different instructor at the time. My instructor seemed relatively young and new so I didn't raise it with her, and I didn't feel able to speak to the other instructor at the time (their lesson also finished during mine). I do have a regular instructor who has been there for some time who I could maybe speak to about it but again, don't know whether she would or could do anything?

They don't seem to have any senior instructors and I've only seen the owner on-site once - the only members of staff present on the yard whenever I've been there seem to be various instructors (all young) and the office administrator. I can't find a complaints policy or feedback form on their website.

I want to raise it with someone, but not sure the best route to go down. I also have a slight feeling of not wanting to get the instructor in question 'in trouble' by going straight to management and feel that maybe I should've said something there and then but it just didn't feel appropriate.

I could email the office detailing the incident but what if they ignore it? Would reporting to the BHS as a welfare concern (not naming instructor) be too drastic?

Thank you in advance.

 

[moosea]

I think if you are going to ride with 'your' instructor in the next few days then I would address it with them first. If not I might be tempted to ask the office manager to get the yard manager / owner to contact you and discuss with them.

Im not sure how hard the child was hitting the pony, but the fact the instructor was advising them to do so would be my concern.

 

[teapot]

Take it up with the riding school first, whether that's the yard manager or office manager - be factual, not emotional. What is the complaint about? Quality/content of teaching and/or welfare of the pony?

I wouldn't involve your current instructor - it wasn't their lesson after all, your complaint is about what you saw/heard going on in another lesson. Be prepared for them to ignore it, or defend the actions 'oh that's Stubborn, he needs that' or something, depending on the quality of the rs obviously. There was a reason in one of my previous jobs we had CCTV in every arena, and it wasn't simply for security purposes.

If you don't get a satisfactory response to the level you're hoping for, and you can put 'please acknowledge by x date' you could then go to the BHS, but without evidence I don't know what they'd do...