Case%Studies ·...

Inspired)Equine)Assisted)Learning)CIC)is)a)not4for4profit)company)limited)by)guarantee.)

Registration)no:)9803457)

Case%Studies!

A"9$year$old"boy"with"ADHD,"hypermobility"and"learning"difficulties"

Paid"for"by"family"!

The!sessions!really!helped!the!client!to!learn!to!

control!his!emotions.!He!loved!the!horses!and!in!

order!to!groom!and!lead!them!it!was!necessary!to!

remain!calm!and!relaxed.!Whenever!his!energy!

levels!started!to!rise,!the!horses!would!provide!

instant!feedback!and!the!client!learnt!he!had!to!

immediately!relax!to!remain!in!the!their!company.!

Using!these!new!skills!at!home!helped!him!to!

control!his!emotions!and!improve!his!relationships!

with!his!parents!and!siblings.!!

Horses"Helping"To"Improve"Care"Home"Residents"Happiness""

Paid"for"by"care"homes"!

Inspired!Equine!Assisted!Learning!CIC!

recently!took!two!of!their!ponies,!Toffee!

and!Pepsi,!to!meet!residents!at!local!care!

homes.!

!

The!idea!of!Equine!Assisted!Learning!

(EAL)!is!that!spending!time!with!horses!is!

a!very!positive!experience.!Horses!give!

residents!a!wonderful!sense!of!wellHbeing!

and!inner!peace!and!can!also!help!

rekindle!many!happy!memories.!

!

Typical!EAL!Activities!for!care!home!residents!include:!

! Relaxing,!asking!questions!and!reminiscing!while!watching!the!ponies!grazing!and!interacting.!

! Petting!and!stroking!the!ponies.!! Grooming!the!ponies:!promoting!gentle!stretching!and!coordination.!

!

We!received!very!positive!feedback!from!the!sessions,!with!residents!eagerly!

looking!forward!to!the!arrival!of!the!ponies!and!participating!in!the!sessions.!

Residents!asked!lots!of!questions!about!the!ponies!with!some!reminiscing!about!

riding!and!farming!with!horses.!!

!

Inspired)Equine)Assisted)Learning)CIC)is)a)not4for4profit)company)limited)by)guarantee.)

Registration)no:)9803457)

There!is!anecdotal!evidence!that!

significantly!more!residents!

actively!participated!and!enjoyed!

the!innovative!EAL!sessions!than!

take!part!in!some!of!the!other!

regular!activities!that!are!

provided!for!them.!Many!are!also!

planning!private!family!visits!to!

Inspired!Equine!Assisted!

Learning!to!meet!all!the!horses!

and!ponies,!have!a!cup!of!tea!and!

relax!in!the!countryside.!

!

People"with"early"stage"dementia"and"their"carers"

Funded"by"the"LCYCP"Dementia"Project"!

These!sessions!equally!benefited!those!living!with!early!stage!dementia!and!their!

carers.!The!activities!took!place!in!the!peaceful!Lincolnshire!countryside!and!

included!grooming,!leading!and!learning!about!equine!behaviour.!Although!the!

degree!of!involvement!was!left!entirely!up!to!each!participant,!the!safe,!and!

supportive!environment!encouraged!everyone!to!interact!with!others,!learn!new!

skills!and!develop!close!partnerships!with!the!horses.!

!

Attendees!enjoyed!varied!new!EAL!tasks,!often!working!together!as!equal!

partners.!The!horses!and!ponies!are!very!empathetic!in!these!situations!and!so!

help!to!further!enrich!the!experiences.!

!

Also!we!offered!the!carers!some!“quality!time”!with!the!horses!and!a!chance!to!

“unwind”!on!their!own!or!with!a!facilitator.!Carers!reported!that!this!helped!

them!feel!less!stressed!and!improve!their!general!sense!of!wellbeing.!!

!

“My$beautiful$dad.$Thank$you$so$much$Mike,$Claire$and$Lynzie$for$spending$time$with$us$today.$Such$warm$lovely$people$who$made$us$feel$at$home.$Beautiful$horses$and$had$fab$time”))–)Zoe)West)

!

Inspired)Equine)Assisted)Learning)CIC)is)a)not4for4profit)company)limited)by)guarantee.)

Registration)no:)9803457)

The"John"Fielding"Community"Special"School"Basic"Horse"and"Pony"Care"Course"

Paid"for"by"the"school"and"parental"contributions"!

The!John!Fielding!Community!Special!School!provides!a!curriculum!that!is!caring,!

aspirational,!relevant!and!engaging.!The!school!want!everyone!to!be!happy!and!

eager!to!come!to!school,!to!do!their!best!and!also!to!develop!skills!to!prepare!

them!for!life!beyond!school.!!

!

The!School!aims!to!provide!a!broad,!balanced!and!differentiated!curriculum!

designed!to!meet!the!unique!needs!of!all!their!pupils.!Pupils!are!aged!between!2!

and19!years!old!and!have!a!range!of!learning!difficulties,!some!also!have!an!

autistic!spectrum!disorder,!epilepsy,!a!physical!disability,!sensory!impairment,!

medical!needs!or!a!communication!difficulty.!

!

The!school!asked!Inspired!Equine!Assisted!Learning!CIC!to!develop!a!teaching!

framework!that!would!allow!their!pupils!to!learn!about!basic!horse!and!pony!

care!during!a!6!week!half!term!period.!The!framework!was!designed!to!be!fully!

interactive!and!adaptable!to!the!age!and!abilities!of!each!individual!class.!The!

framework!also!includes!the!necesssary!degree!of!flexibility!to!allow!for!issues!

such!as!inclement!weather!or!a!certain!activity!taking!longer!than!expected!with!

a!particular!group.!

!

The!sessions!have!proved!incredibly!popular!with!pupils!and!helped!them!to!

noticeably!improve!week!on!week!in!the!following!areas:!!

!

! SelfHconfidence!and!leadership.!! Coordination,!balance!and!spatial!awareness.!! Controlling!emotions!and!energy.!! Improved!behaviour!and!concentration.!! Enhanced!use!of!speech!and!body!language.!! Responsibility,!teamwork!and!encouraging!others.!! Demonstrating!an!understanding!of!the!subject.!

!

Parents!are!invited!to!attend!the!last!session!of!the!term.!This!enables!them!to!

join!in!with!some!of!the!activities!and!also!witness!what!their!child!has!

accomplished!during!the!term.!

!

When!they!complete!the!course!all!pupils!are!awarded!a!certificate!and!rosette!to!

acknowledge!their!hard!work!and!achievements.!

!

“My$class$at$the$John$fielding$school$have$had$a$lovely$6$weeks$here$learning$how$to$look$after$the$horses$and$ponies.$All$staff$(and$animals)$were$very$calm$and$patient$with$my$pupils.$Thank$you$for$an$enjoyable$term$xx”))—)Vicky)Spillane,)December)6,)2016!

Inspired)Equine)Assisted)Learning)CIC)is)a)not4for4profit)company)limited)by)guarantee.)

Registration)no:)9803457)

Lincolnshire"Fire"and"Rescue"Service"

Paid"for"through"fundraising"activities"!

Green!Watch!from!Spalding!Fire!Station!are!trained!in!large!animal!rescue!and!

were!looking!for!opportunities!to!diversify!their!training!and!make!it!more!

realistic!with!handsHon!training!with!live!animals.!

!

Our!advice!and!the!reactions!of!the!horses!helped!to!highlight!to!Green!Watch!

the!best!methods!of!dealing!with!large!animals!in!a!variety!of!different!situations,!

some!of!which!could!be!potentially!stressful!and!dangerous.!!

!

Horses!make!perfect!learning!

partners!for!the!Fire!and!Rescue!

Services!trained!in!large!animal!

rescue,!as!although!large!and!

imposing!they!are!accustomed!

to!being!handled;!however!their!

natural!responses!give!

immediate!and!authentic!

feedback!about!the!handler’s!

energy,!body!language!and!

confidence.!

Someone"living"with"Asperger"syndrome"and"mobility"restrictions"

Paid"for"using"their"NHS"personal"health"budget"!

Equine!assisted!learning!offered!this!client!with!Asperger’s!syndrome!the!

opportunities!to!improve!her!social!skills!without!having!to!interact!with!other!

human!beings!who!frequently!criticised!her!mistakes.!Sociability!issues!were!

addressed!through!

interactions!with!horses!that!

provided!direct,!immediate!

and!nonHcritical!feedback!

through!their!actions.!As!the!

animals!don’t!talk,!the!client!

could!focus!on!the!vitally!

important!nonHverbal!

aspects!of!relationships!and!

social!interaction,!as!these!

nonHverbal!features!of!

communication!are!the!most!

challenging!for!people!with!

Asperger’s.!!

!

Inspired)Equine)Assisted)Learning)CIC)is)a)not4for4profit)company)limited)by)guarantee.)Registration)no:)9803457)

!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our)part)in)an)inspirational)story))

))

The)following)quote)is)from)the)Lincolnshire)Partnership)Foundation)Trust.)!

“Lincolnshire!Partnership!Foundation!Trust,!the!Mental!Health!Trust!for!Lincolnshire,!now!has!a!county;wide!Employment!Service!providing!support!for!Service!Users!with!severe!and/or!enduring!mental!health!conditions!to!

gain!and!retain!paid!employment.!!

P!is!one!of!our!Service!Users,!who!was!referred!to!the!Service!in!2018.!!P!had!found!that!contact!with!animals!significantly!improved!his!symptoms!and!raised!his!mood.!We!had!heard!of!the!work!of!Inspired!Equine!Solutions!(IdEAL)!at!Fosdyke,!and!approached!Mike!and!Claire!to!see!whether!there!would!be!the!possibility!for!P!to!volunteer!at!the!stables!as!a!means!to!gain!work!experience!to!position!him!better!to!secure!paid!employment.!!The!

IdEAL!team!agreed!immediately!to!support!us!and!P!began!volunteering!in!September!2018.!!Under!IdEAL's!supervision,!P!has!learned!new!skills!and!been!fully!embraced!in!to!the!team.!!As!a!result,!his!mental!health!has!shown!a!marked!and!sustained!improvement.!!In!January!this!year!IdEAL!offered!P!part;time!paid!work,!and!in!February,!we!are!delighted!to!report!that!P!commenced!paid!work.!!The!IPS!service!maintains!close!contact!with!both!IdEAL!and!P,!ready!to!provide!any!support!or!advice!to!either!party,!should!

this!become!necessary.”!!

To)find)out)more)about)IdEAL)visit)www.inspired4eal.co.uk)