Paula Clements
"I found the support I got an excellent resource. The suggested
consultation element was very useful i.e. to listen to other owner's experiences
and developmental ideas. I also found the section on Law, Insurance,
Accounting and different types of Livery and ownership
useful.
“The most challenging element for me personally was keeping the work
consistent due to a full time job and two young horses to care for. Although
having the flexibility to complete in my own time made
it possible to juggle it all. “Thank you.”
“Without formal qualifications I decided that I would benefit from achieving something which would identify to my livery clients that I had gained a thorough grounding in the theory of horse care. I aim to adapt my research and own work on this course to train my staff and perhaps offer NVQ & eventually Stages training too”
“The combined Intermediate Diploma programme is ideal. I have worked with horses for over 30 years but needed to brush up and get more up to date. Fast tracking Level 1 suited me admirably”
“TheIntermediate Diploma (Level 1 course/element) is a great building block towards my Stage 2 BHS exam. The information provided is excellent"
"Can I take this opportunity to let you know how much
I am enjoying the course. The knowledge I am gaining is
invaluable. I work on a private showing yard and the ponies
qualify for Horse of the Year Show regularly yet I still
find things in my course work that when I talk to my boss
about she is really interested to know. Today she even
threw away her wound powder after a discussion about my
latest study pack.
Thank you for a brilliant courses."
“ I am writing to you firstly to thank you for this
wonderful & exciting opportunity. Study Pack
1 of the Level 1 course has been great in every way, easy
to read and insightful.
“It really has been great, and an inspiration in learning.
I have learnt so much more on subjects I thought I already
knew. It has just been a terrific learning experience.
Without Lingfield I would not have been able to fit my dream
course in and around work. So just a big thank you so much.”
“I am writing this letter to say thank you so
much for your support. I have done my exam questions
and have enclosed them. I think I have answered them
as best I can.
“I have gained so much more knowledge of horses
and their care. I want to progress next to Level 2. thank
you again for your support.”
Wow! this course is fabulous. I have never seen such an abundance of supportive and helpful information in one place. I think it's a must for all new or prospective horse owners and will help many a horse and owner to reach their potential with confidence. I will recommend this course to anyone I know who is considering owning a horse.
The Lingfield Instructor Group. Sixteen successful years.
It all started on a Monday evening with just 12 people in
the front-room of her home in Lingfield, Surrey.
Then it moved to small venue rooms at various pubs in the
area: The Hare and Hounds, the Old Horse at Home, Dormansland,
The Woodcock, Newchapel.
Today as they celebrate their 13th anniversary, the Lingfield Instructor Group, which is no longer based in Lingfield but is now 9 miles outside Dulverton, Somerset, is probably the largest, fastest-growing international equine distance-learning organisation in the world with thousands of students all around the globe aged between eleven-years and 67-years old.
At present, an eleven-year-old girl from Cheshire is studying Equine Care and Management on a shared course with her mother, and a 67 year-old man is studying Equine Psychology. Other students like Natasha in Northern Ireland and Marie in Glasgow are enrolled on Intermediate Diploma programmes in Equine Feeding & Nutrition while in Singapore and Dubai, Carl and Bema are studying Equine Livery Yard Management. Still more students in Norway, Greece, Slovenia, New Zealand, South Africa and even Australia are studying anything from Equine Psychology to Equine Management & Care.
The list of past students is equally impressive. Among them are Bill Maher, who studied Equine Management during his spell with the Grenadier Guards riding the drum horse. Two others have moved on to achieve professional qualifications and finally to up-sticks with their families and to respectively buy their own riding school on the Sussex coast and a Riding Holiday centre in Wales.
Says Paula Clements, who founded the organisation, “I feel passionately about horses and about the fact that they should be properly looked after. That’s really why I started the courses in the first place. As well as helping my clients improve their riding and training abilities, I helped them to learn more about the care of their horses. If the horses are well cared for and in a way which suits the riders abilities, they are happy and more willing to work well for their riders. The two things are totally and utterly linked.
"At first, we just had small groups. Then we gave talks and lectures Then
people wanted notes of the lectures, Then as the demand grew and we started
getting enquiries from more and more people from further and further afield,
we turned it into what in those days was called a correspondence course. Today,
of course, it’s called distance-learning. It is the same thing really. I
never dreamt that it would turn out to be as big and as wide ranging as it
has.”
Since they started, she estimates, that over 3,000 students
from all over the world have taken any one of Lingfield’s
horse courses which cover everything from general care
to practical equine psychology.
Says Paula, “People take the courses because they want to know what they are doing when they are handling and taking care of horses. Some are young and just starting out on a career. Others have been away from horses for some time and want a re-fresher course. Many are now running their own livery yards and find that the more knowledgeable owners are sometimes one step ahead of them. It puts them on the back-foot somewhat when their clients know more than they do. I think there is also a growing demand for qualifications. In many parts of the work people look to the UK for equine qualifications.”
Plus, of course, the fact that all Lingfield’s courses are written by trained, experienced, practical, professional horse people who are friendly and approachable. Every student has their own course tutor to call on throughout their course. The tutor is the person who wrote the course so they know their topic inside out.
Hannah Haskew, for example, wrote the course on Livery Yard Management and most of the Equine Psychology Course. Hannah is a well qualified BHS Instructor at Level 2 UKCC (UK Coaching Certificate), she has run a variety of stables and is a very experienced manager and equine therapist. She achieved student of the year on completion of her degree in Equine Science, gained her Masters and continues to train further. She has achieved (and continues to achieve) various qualifications, amongst them are McTimmony practitioner and qualified Equine Body Worker working closely with, and recommended by, vets in her area.
Hazel Reed is author of the professional books used by students aiming at their BHS Stages exams, such as the 'Riding & Stable Management' books and the 'Preliminary Teaching Test' book. Hazel knows her stuff as far as the exams are concerned. .She has published at least four books in this group as well as other books. Hazel is currently working on the final draft of the Practical Equine Psychology & Behaviour course.
Says Paula, “We also have Liz McIlwraith who owns and runs Bridge House Equestrian Centre in Slinfold, Sussex. Liz has a wealth of knowledge on feeding a huge variety of equines from competition horses to riding school ponies gained over her many years of owning the centre. Liz wrote the Equine Feeding & Nutrition Course. Liz is aiming to produce a How to Care for Your Pony course for younger students in the near future.
“Fiona Dent is the equine first aid specialist and is currently producing
a course for us on this topic. Fiona is a well qualified BHS instructor at
Level 3 UKCC with many years experience and a wide cleint base in Kent, Surrey & Sussex. Fiona
is also a Riding for the Disabled Area Instructor and Assessor on the UKCC
side for them too.
“We are currently looking for another instructor to join the team who
could help us produce a good all round 'schooling your horse' course. The
instructor has to be the right person though with a great deal of empathy with
the new owner and prospective owner who are often mature people. They
also need to be mature themselves and able to produce the sort of course that
both novice and the more experienced owner would be interested in. It
is not easy to find the right person. We are keen to get this course
written very soon. We have a number of students interested and ready
and waiting for help. If any mature instructors out there feel they
can help we would love to hear from them.
“Our course fees are quite low by comparison to some of the other equine courses available. This is because we have kept staffing levels as low as possible and our overheads are minimal by comparison to the big colleges with huge equestrian centres attached. A course on Equine Psychology & Behaviour for example, costs only £129 while a Level 1 course on equine care & management covering the whole gamut of equine care, costs just £150. “
Adds Paula, “You couldn’t get better value anywhere
else in the world.& In fact we are so confident that
the Level 1 equine care & management course is the best
value for this sort of course we offer a complete refund
if any student can show us a course of similar length and
content. It really is a very full and complete
course covering just about every aspect of management. It
is therefore ideal for those who are experienced and want
to update as well as those with a general interest in learning
more. We keep the fees low because we want to help
people look after their horses in a more natural and healthy
way – it is the horse which is important to us not
the fees.”
Hence the ever-growing demand.
Paula’s own interest in horses began when she just nine-years-old. Her parents were not horsey but found her a steady 13 hand welsh cross to loan. From there her passion grew and stayed with her. Today Paula still finds time to ride out on Exmoor as often as possible.
“I think we have a duty to our horses to ensure they have a good life and to reduce the number of welfare cases we see. Part and parcel of that is to help owners feel more confident about how they care for their horses on a day to day basis,” says Paula.
That’s what she started doing
when the courses were originally set up 16-years ago.
That is what she is still doing today.