By Anna Cooper, third-generation co-owner of Bourne Vale Stables
Saturday’s Open Day was one of those afternoons that reminds you exactly why we have been doing what we do here for sixty-four years. Children met ponies for the first time, brushed them like they’d been doing it forever, and one or two were still negotiating a permanent stay when their parents called time! If you came down, thank you. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. If you didn’t, here is what you missed, and what we learned about why we believe a day like that is important.
The sit-on sessions: the moments we’ll remember the most
The sit-on slots were fully booked before the day began, and every single one had something in common. A young child, some nervous, some not, sitting on a pony that has been doing this calmly for years. Quiet encouragement from a parent and from whoever was leading the pony. A walk of a few steps. A few words from our instructor Sarah, and a face that didn’t quite know what to do with itself slowly transforms. Nervousness giving way to a warm smile as the child finds the rhythm of the pony and their confidence starts to build.
For us, a sit-on session is not really about the riding. It is about that first moment of trust between a child and a pony. We have built our youngest sessions, including Tiny Tots on Friday afternoons, around exactly that idea. Confidence first. Familiarity first. The riding follows when the child is ready, not before.
Grooming a pony and what children really learn
The grooming sessions were popular from open to close, and I always think this is the part that says the most about our approach. Watching a four-year-old hold a body brush in both hands while one of our team explains how to stroke correctly, how to be gentle, how to say hello before you start. It is care and compassion, taught through the physical act of doing.
That is where respect for the horse begins. Not in a lecture about how to behave around them, but in a few quiet minutes where a young person learns that a big animal is a creature with feelings of its own. By the end of the afternoon we had children correcting their parents’ brushing technique, which is one of the warmer compliments a riding school can be paid!
What visitors actually asked us about
The yard tours ran at the designated times and the team enjoyed every conversation. Plenty of people wanted to see the stables, the school, and where the ponies live and eat when they are not working. A surprising number of parents asked about adult lessons for themselves, often with a quiet “I have always wanted to” attached. If that was you on Saturday but you didn’t get the chance to ask, do give the office a ring and we will happily talk you through what a first lesson at Bourne Vale looks like.
Watching your child try something new
One of the simple pleasures of an Open Day, and of being a parent more generally, is watching your child try something new. A small person who arrives a bit unsure, half hiding behind a leg, and who five minutes later is sitting on a pony with a careful smile, having decided to be brave. That moment, when nervousness gives way to confidence, is one of the loveliest things to stand back and witness. Saturday gave us plenty of them.
Children grow by stepping just outside of what feels comfortable, and time around horses is one of the gentlest ways to take that step. The pony is calm, one of our team is on hand, a parent is nearby, and a small first decision (yes, I will sit on the pony) becomes the kind of memory that gets retold in the car on the way home. We saw a lot of phones held up in the gallery, and it’s lovely to think that a lot of new family memories were made on Saturday.
Tiny Tots, our adult novice class, and the wider point
Tiny Tots and the new adult novice class are both on the timetable now, and a lot of the conversations on Saturday were about which of our sessions would be the right fit for which family. It was about giving people the chance to see, in person, the kind of place their child or they themselves would be coming to.
Everything we did on Saturday, the sit-ons, the grooming, the tours, came back to the same belief. Time around horses is good for people. It builds confidence in both children and adults and can help nurture a sense of calm and compassion. I’m confident the Open Day let that speak for itself.
We will run sit-on sessions again
We will be running sit-on sessions at our next Open Day. We do not have a date locked in yet, but it will go up on the website and on Facebook as soon as it is. If you missed out this time and you have a small person who has been asking, that is the one to keep an eye out for.
Thank you
To everyone who came down on Saturday, thank you for filling the yard with the right kind of noise. To our team, who were here before the gates opened and were still smiling when we shut them. And to the ponies, for being their usual amazing selves.
We will see you at the next one.