Come Along for the Ride
We joined Katy, our Client and Disability Champion, for her Wednesday morning carriage driving session with the Happy Landings Carriage Driving Group. Lucy, Kingsway Care’s Field Care Supervisor and fellow horse lover was also champing at the bit to volunteer for some fun in the Horsham countryside.
Carriage Driving is an activity that Katy has been doing for more than ten years. She tells me, “I started doing it because I used to ride as a child but then couldn’t sit on the horse anymore. So the RDA (Riding for the Disabled) advised me to get involved with Carriage Driving.“
Happy Landings Carriage Driving Group
After a two-year break because of covid restrictions, Katy was excited to be back carriage driving at Happy Landings. She said, “It was so good to meet up with old friends again. I had missed the ponies and the thrill of carriage driving so much.”
Lucy adds, “It was great to help Katy get out and I really enjoyed joining the other volunteers biking alongside the carriage through the Sussex countryside.” It sounds like they both had great fun!
Fancy Being a Volunteer?
Unfortunately, Happy Landings is a pony short at the moment and unable to take on any new carriage drivers but you can contact them to join the waiting list. As a charity, they do rely on volunteers and donations to continue providing the social activity. Let’s find out how you could help.
Carol from Happy Landings explains:
“We do need volunteers. They do not need to be too knowledgeable about ponies as full training is given. The important thing is that they can ride a bike!!”
Accessible Sport for all
Carol continues, “Our carriages are adapted to take both ambulant and wheelchair drivers and we need people able to ride bicycles to go out with the carriages. You do not need to cycle very far each time, as each drive is approximately 20 – 30 minutes. We do have some electric bikes that prove very popular too!”
What do you do on Wednesday mornings?
Benefits of Volunteering
As with most volunteering, it benefits the volunteer too. Lucy had a great time enjoying the outdoors, keeping fit, and making new friends. If you can ride a bike and fancy volunteering for some fun, contact Carol at Happy Landings carol@happylandings-rda.co.uk. Or visit the website for more details www.happylandings-rda.co.uk
Get in touch
If you have disabilities and need help getting out and about, contact our friendly team for a chat to discuss how we can help you. We love to help Kingsway Care Clients have fun. Tel: 01273 077444 or email: info@kingswaycare.com
