Would you ever consider this...

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E_Lister

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Loan a reliable PONY to someone, if you knew it would be carefully looked after BUT would be used in private riding lessons with an instructor?

The story behind this question;

My friend and I were talking the other day about our future plans, she is currently doing her stage 3 and PTT so has her 500 hours teaching to do in the near future.

She doesn't want to go down the teach for a year in a riding school route as the majority of schools within striking distance of us are, well, unprofessional and unpleasant (through our personal experiences). Instead she is thinking about working as a freelance instructor (fully insured) and giving private lessons on her own horses as well as going to people with their own ponies.

She owns two ideal schoolmasters however they are 14.2 and 15.2hh so a bit tall for younger children. She had the idea that she might try and loan out or buy a couple of smaller ponies as well for younger children and use them in about 4 or 5 lessons a week.

They would all be cared for individually as if they were her own as she would be cutting down her hours at a dressage yard to accomodate for the teaching and care of extra ponies.

This is clearly still a half baked scheme however she was wondering if loaning ponies would be an option so she could use what capital she has to get good insurance and a better range of riding hats etc or simply as a float whilst her business is starting off.
 
I would not have a problem loaning a horse/pony to an individual and it being used for giving lessons, as long as it was being looked after properly, and that I had been told beforehand of the intentions. I would not like to find a horse loaned to an individual was being used for lessons having not been asked.
 
Well I would assume she would make it very clear, show qualifications, say what is intended to ensure she got suitable ponies.
She would also want a full contract with everything set out and included for both parties peace of mind
smile.gif
 
Technically if she is allowing other people to ride horses provided by her she becomes a riding school and must be licensed the insurance cost may then become an issue.
 
Yeah, I can see that, at the moment she is looking into insurance and because that will be a huge chunk of her budget gone that is why she is looking at loaning instead of buying horses to start with.
 
The other thing to note is that when one is starting out in any job, the CPD and support you get from being surrounded by people more experienced than yourself, and the network of such contacts is invaluable. Whilst the pony situation would not put me off - I'd loan in that scenario (lets face it, kids swap ponies all the time, often at the behest of PC or instructors!), I personally would not want to start out on a new career completely freelance. But I guess that is personal preference. Interestingly I could not have got professional indemnity insurance as a freelancer for what I do without 5 years employment experience with no claims against me - but I appreciate RI may be different.
 
That is very interesting SpottedCat and thankyou for the advice, I shall pass it on to her.

Her current position is that she manages a local, privately ownes dressage yard which funds her training etc, she does not teach there as she isn't qualified however there are several instructors there whom she is friends with and have higher qualifications who might be able to give her assistance or advice if needs be.

She does have high aims and is (grudgingly) aware that this might not be a plausible option (hence the research) but may be worth getting into because, as I mentioned before the local riding schools are not up to much and private, individual tuition with a pony and hat provided without having to go to the larger establishments might be a niche market she can try and enter.
 
Even if she is loaning these ponies and doing one to one tuition she would still need a riding school licence, without that she would not get the appropriate insurance as all ponies/horses that are used are stated on the licence.
 
Thankyou spottybotty. It would be worth enquiring to the BHS about the cost of insurance and a licence then.

Does anyone know if insurance would be lower if she only had a small number of horses (probably under 5)
 
She would have to apply for a licence from her local council, each horse or pony has a vetting from a vet chosen by the council and the premises/tack etc are inspected.The cost of insurance is dependant on the amount of horses/ponys you have on the licence. Believe me it is not cheap, you pay for the licence and the vets time as well as the insurance. I had a very similar set up in 2001 and it roughly cost £1,200 per year for 8.
 
As an aside to the above comments, if your friend is currently studying she should be aware that the 500 hours requirement was scrapped a couple of years ago and to get the full AI qualification in addition to passing the exams she now needs to complete a portfolio for assessment instead.
 
[ QUOTE ]
As an aside to the above comments, if your friend is currently studying she should be aware that the 500 hours requirement was scrapped a couple of years ago and to get the full AI qualification in addition to passing the exams she now needs to complete a portfolio for assessment instead.

[/ QUOTE ]

Are the 500 hours not needed at all? I was under the impression they were needed anyway? Looking at the BHS website I can't see anything though...


BHS Preliminary Teaching Test

This qualification will provide the holder with the competencies to apply the basic principles of coaching, to improve the rider’s horsemanship skills, following a progressive plan. They will understand the health and safety procedures involved in organising a lesson or hack in the open or on the roads. They will be able to modify sessions to facilitate the ability of the rider in front of them. They will be able to evaluate their own performance and show ability to assess progress in their pupils in an unsupervised environment.

<font color="blue">Holders will be able to work in a commercial riding establishment or private yard or as a freelance coach. </font> Preliminary Teachers will have the opportunity to register and gain the Level 2 (UKCC Endorsed) Certificate in Coaching by completing a portfolio of evidence. As from 1 January 2010 holders of the Preliminary Teaching Test, who have completed a portfolio will be able to progress to the BHS Intermediate Teaching Test. The Preliminary Teaching Test is a component part of the BHS Assistant Instructor Certificate.


Does the bit highlighted in blue mean that once she has passed her PTT she can teach straight away anyway? And it gives the impression the portfolio is only mandatory if she decides to get the higher certificate?
 
Ahh I have found something else as well:

In order for candidates to progress from BHSPT to BHSAI they are required to complete a Coaching Portfolio, which they will receive after booking for the PTT exam.

Candidates who passed the PTT prior to January 2007 will still be required to complete and log 500 hours teaching experience


Thankyou for pointing that out Bethie
 
I *think* as far as I understand it, once she has the PTT she will be a BHSPTC (ie holder of the BHS preliminary teaching certificate), to become a BHSAI she needs to do the portfolio.
 
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