Meet the Team

THE COACHES

Our coaches undergo specialist training to support disabled riders. Lessons are designed to reflect each individual’s needs, aspirations and therapeutic goals.

Suzanne

Suzanne started volunteering at Stevenage RDA in 2006 when her son went to nursery. She soon became a group coach and then a group trustee with responsibility for health & safety and coaching. She coaches on a Thursday and does a lot of volunteer training on Mondays.

Suzanne combines her work in the Stevenage group with her roles as Chair of both Hertfordshire County RDA & Eastern Region RDA, together with committee work at the RDA National Head office.

Elaine

Elaine started volunteering in 2014 and has been a group coach since 2017. She has been involved with horses all her life: riding since the age of 5 and was a member of her local Pony Club and Riding Club for many years.

She has loved attending Regional and National Competitions with our riders and enjoys creating themed rides, while trying to incorporate what they are learning at school whenever possible.

Elaine was elected as a group Trustee in 2022.

Hazel

Hazel has been volunteering with Stevenage RDA for many years and became a group coach in 2017. She now teaches on Mondays and Thursdays. Horses have always been part of her life and currently she’s very involved with her own horses and show jumping competitions with her daughter.

Hazel enjoys passing on her experience to our riders and has been very involved in helping take some of our riders through from online dressage tests to Regional and National competitions. She hopes to continue to encourage our riders to get involved, learn and have fun.

Hazel was elected as a group Trustee in 2022

Denise

Denise started volunteering with the Stevenage and District RDA since 2019 and has been around horses for most of her life and has owned my own for over 30 years.

Denise has worked with young children for 35 years but working with the RDA’s children it has given her more fulfilment than she imagined.

When Denise was first approached to train as a coach, she turned it down as she thought that being dyslexic it would prohibit her from contributing but with the support and encouragement from the team, she became a coach in July 2023.