NEWS

News and Events Click here for archived news and events

Here is a calendar of events / meetings etc. for the CRG click on any item to get more details.

Click on AGENDA then click on LOOK FOR MORE until you include as many months as you look at.

Event : Click on an item in the list to go straight to it.	Date added to Site	Date of Event

Coastal Routes Petition	01/08/07

BHS Safety leaflet.	15/11/07


Carmarthenshire Riders Group Ride	10/07/08	27/07/08


Abergorlech byway

Right of Way Improvement Plan Draft Please read & comment!		ASAP

Anybody use Cynghordy Bridleways ?	08/02/07	Reply ASAP please
New Bridleway - Golden Grove - Gelli Aur	13/03/07
Anybody use Llanawrda Bridleways ?	14/04/07	urgent

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Click on the poster to print a form and poster out. (Adobe Acrobat needed)

Please display a poster anywhere if you can.

Fill in the entry form and return to address on form

complete with payment.

Please note that we are now using one form for all events,

so please enter the ride and date that you wish to attend.

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A list of local events , not necessarily organised by the Carms Riders Group can be found on the forum.

The forum is also a good place to post a message if you would like a ride buddy or to share transport to events etc.

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NEWS AND INFORMATION

Nottinghamshire Mounted Police

Mounted Police Officers in the Nottinghamshire area have put together a great e-publication entitled ‘Horse Talk’, which contains lots of information on the work of the Mounted Section and which also promotes the BHS Riding & Road Safety Test. If you would like to take a look, please log on to www.nottinghamshire.police.uk/authority or email them on npa@nottinghamshire.pnn.police.uk for more information.

Foot & Mouth Scare

DEFRA has issued a useful Guidance Note on precautions to take to control, contain and avoid the spreading of Foot & Mouth Disease. It can be found on their website at www.defra.gov.uk . There is also a help line number if you require more information: 08459 335577.

Bluetongue

For information regarding horse-related Bluetongue disease, a good resource is, again, the Defra website www.defra.gov.uk/bluetongue

Safety Conference

The Biennial Safety Conference took place on Saturday 15^th September at Coventry Transport Museum – a lovely venue in the heart of the city – and was ably chaired by Stuart Lovatt, Highways Agency Safety Action Plan Coordinator.

The topics under discussion were many and varied and are briefly detailed below:

Riding in Pregnancy

Dr Ted Adams, Obstetrics & Gynaecology Registrar at Liverpool Women’s Hospital explained the anatomical & physiological state of pregnancy and what the potential pitfalls of riding whilst pregnant could be. He advocated consulting your Obstetrician before getting on a horse whilst pregnant and heeding the advice given, as well as using your own common sense.

Safety is a State of Mind

PC Keith Brothwell, who is both a Marshall Arts Expert and a Police Officer, described how to recognise the signs of fear and aggression in a person, and how to manage them in a hostile environment. This was particularly aimed at the lone equestrian. PC Brothwell suggested ways of defending yourself whilst keeping within the law and, through his company, State 11 Ltd.; he has put together two Equestrian-orientated self-defence courses, which are offered at a discounted rate to BHS members. For more information, contact PC Brothwell on 07791 322767.

Rural Safety/Animal Rescue

Jim Green and Anton Phillips of Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service have been instrumental in producing the Equine Emergency Protocol, and outlined at the Conference what this actually entailed. Both Officers deal with animal rescue and are involved with the prevention, protection and response measures within the rural community.

Health & Safety around the Yard

Sarah Houston gave a talk on safety around the yard. She suggested simple and easy to implement ways safety could be improved, and what to be aware of.

Our thanks are extended to all the speakers for what was an informative, entertaining and enlightening experience, enjoyed by all.

A repeat of the Conference is expected to be held in Scotland on 23^rd February 2008.

Highway Code Update

The newly updated version of the Highway Code is now available from newsagents and bookshops priced at £2.50 Also see the information at www.direct.gov.uk

QCA Accreditation

The Riding & Road Safety Test has gained accreditation from the Qualifications & Curriculum Authority (QCA), which is a great achievement. As the Test is now part of the National Qualification Framework (NQF), not only is funding more accessible to trainers but it also means that the test demonstrates to the regulators that it complies with their rigorous and stringent quality assurance assessment and process.

Riding & Road Safety Examiners will be required to undertake training in the process and marking of the QCA Test Papers. Dates for training follow, and, as always, the office can be contacted for more information:

DATE REGION VENUE/AREA

23^rdJan S.West Plumpton

5^th Feb West (Provisionally) Bicton

6^th Feb Gloucester/Somerset TBC

12^th Feb W Mids Rodbaston

21^st Feb Yorks Bishop Burton

5^th March Wales Pencoed

18^th March Eastern (Suffolk) Poplar Park

19^th Mar London Trent Park

20^th Mar Eastern (Wisbech) Coll. of West Anglia

2^nd April E Mids (Notts) Bilsthorpe

9^th April Southern (Berks) BCA

10^th April W Mids (Warks) Warks Coll.

23^rd April Scotland (Inverness) Faraway

24th April Scotland Sandyflats

29^th April N. Ireland Necarne

30^th April Eire Grennan

7^th May N West (Lancs) Myerscough

8^th May Wales (Flints) Northop

13^th May North (Cumbria) Blackdyke

14^th May North (Cleveland) Stainsby Grange

Prince Michael International Road Safety Award

The above prestigious award was presented to the Society at the Sefton Awards Ceremony in London, in recognition of the achievements of the Safety Department s work with the Riding & Road Safety Training Programme. The award was originally nominated for the Road Safety Interactive CD-rom but given in recognition of the entire R&RS test programme.

Fireworks

We are fast approaching Bonfire Night and the Safety Department receives many calls relating to fireworks and horses. Under Section 1 of the Protection of Animals Act 1911, it is an offence to cause unnecessary suffering to any domestic or captive animals. If convicted, the penalty is a fine of up to £5000, up to six months imprisonment, or both. Enforcement of this Section of the Act rests with Trading Standards, the Police or the RSPCA as appropriate. For more information log on to http://www.berr.gov.uk/fireworks/

There is a petition at http://petitions.pm.gov/Fireworks-abuse/ which aims to persuade the Prime Minister to licence the use of fireworks for public display only, and on recognised dates only. Please take a look at this site and sign the petition.

Please submit reports of any firework-related horse incidents to the office. This information is being collated by Di and she can be contacted on D.Parkinson@bhs.org.uk or 01926 707782.

General Information

There are many informative websites available on a range of topics, which may be of interest to our readers. Details are shown below:

The Ministry of Justice’s Statute Law Database has information on topics such as the Highways Act 1980 and the Law of Property Act 1925 and can be accessed on www.statutelaw.gov.uk/Home.aspx
E Petitions – please sign up to improve access for horse riders to off-road riding, affording them the same rights as walkers, cyclists etc on http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Equestrianaccess
British Equestrian Federation Equine Databases – to get your work noticed or to research results online, contact www.befred.org
Maureen Comber, Access Volunteer from the N E Hampshire region, and a Trustee, has been successful in getting the following motion accepted at East Hampshire District Council:

‘The Council urgently requests the Highway Authority to review speed limits on single track carriageway rural roads in East Hampshire, with a view to imposing lower limits to enable safer travel for all road users including, cyclists, horse riders and pedestrians’.

Many congratulations to Maureen for this great achievement.

London’s Low Emission – a booklet outlining what the zone is, who it applies to, the date it becomes operational etc can be downloaded at http://www.tfl.gov.uk/roadusers/lez/default.aspx or obtained as a hard copy by phoning 0845 607 0009

BHS Access Fighting Fund Appeal

The recent loss of an established equestrian right of way and costs against the BHS galvanised the launch of the above fund. Please donate if you are able to, by either logging on to www.justgiving.com/accessfightingfund or by sending a cheque to the BHS at Stoneleigh.

Training for Trainers & Examiners Dates 2008

Training dates are in the process of being received and confirmed by the office. More information will follow as soon as it is known. If, in the meantime, you have a query, please contact the Safety Department on 01926 707745, or safety1@bhs.org.uk

Can all Trainers and Examiners ensure they maintain their status by attending the Biennial Update Training Days as applicable please? EXAMINERS PLEASE NOTE THAT QCA TRAINING DOES NOT COUNT AS BIENNIAL UPDATE TRAINING - SORRY

Riding & Road Safety Tests

Have you taken your Riding & Road Safety Test? There are plenty of opportunities to do so. A list of all the venues holding tests can be found on the BHS website by following the link on the safety pages. Alternatively, you can contact the office on 01926 707823 (Hilary/Jean or 01926 707782 (Did) for more information.

‘C’ Licence Update

There was an overwhelming response to the special offer for the ‘C’ Licence and all the places have now been filled. If anyone who has applied would like more information on the position of their application, please contact the company, Clear stone Rollright, on 01608 677618.

New funding may be made available as from this month - please contact Di for more information on d.Parkinson@bhs.org.uk

And finally …

Please take care when riding out as the darker nights are setting in. ALWAYS wear Hi-Viz clothing and ensure your horse is kitted out in Hi-Viz gear too. Even if you are riding in the middle of the day, it is better to be seen, particularly when passing under trees or passing through sunlight where a driver’s vision may be obscured. Don’t forget if you have passed your Riding & Road Safety Test, you are eligible for a one-off discount on V-Bandz h-viz clothing. You will need your unique certificate number to take advantage of this offer, but it is well worth it.

Safe Riding!

Sheila Hardy

Senior Executive

The British Horse Society

PS Trainers and Test Organisers please note that they will need to update their candidate application forms on 1^st January 2008 to ensure that the correct fees are being paid. Please contact the Safety Office for this information. Thanks.

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download Acrobat reader

The next ride is on ***********. However as I found organising the last ride too hectic because I live 30 miles from the forestry, I am asking for helpers in the locality to do the following jobs.

1. Assist in marking it with me the weekend and weekdays before (in the evenings after 6)
2. Make lunches for the helpers the night before (this need not be a rider but can be a mum or husband)
3. Assist with unmarking it after the ride preferably the day or 2 days
afterwards.

Obviously I always need help with parking marshalling, manning a checkpoint, time keeper-logging riders out and back , checking on the checkpoints at intervals and someone making tea at the venue.

Without this help the rides cannot take place and as a group we have
sufficient members for this to be spread around. You will have a fun day.
Please e-mail us an offer to help if you can spare the time.

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Local Access Forum

Look at CCC web site under Leisure for dates and exact location. I will get a map with the agenda if anyone wants to email me for the location.

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Coastal Routes Petition

There's a new petition on the No10 site for access for equestrians to be included in all legislation, and the coastal route.

http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Equestrianaccess/

AGM

The group AGM was very well attended. Thank you all for your continuing support.

Many thanks to Jillie Gardiner for her talk on Lost Ways and recovering historical routes.

Here's looking forward to a successful and productive year.

All offers of help are gratefully received.

Some questions were raised by members about some routes they were having problems with. Please take a look at Current Projects for more details. Any other riders that know the routes, please contact us asap.

Added: 08/02/07

Llanwrda Bridleways & Green Tracks

This is an URGENT REQUEST for information from anybody that rides, has ridden, or has any information about a green track near Llanwrda. The council wants to downgrade parts to a footpath. We need to know if anybody knows of any users of this track or has any opinions on whether this has been used for riding recently or can be ridden.

Please click HERE FOR PLANS.

Cynghordy area Bridleway 37, 59, & 60

Caroline Fergusson from the Access and Rights of Way office at
Carmarthenshire County Council has informed us that works are nearly
complete on the Cynghordy area Bridleway 37/59 and 60- see pictures below. Once the works are complete, due in March, it would be nice to arrange a local ride there just to launch them with some publicity photos. Please revisit our website to check when it will be. All details to be posted in due course.
A big thank you to Caroline for her hard work and to the riders involved in discussing this with her