Park Palace Ponies wins National Lottery funding to create new project for L8 families

Park Palace Ponies has secured National Lottery funding to create a new affordable project specifically for L8 families.

The Urban Herd will offer subsidised riding lessons, ‘pocket money’ grooming sessions and free open stable days for all ages to get involved in.

The idea is to make sessions at Park Palace Ponies more accessible to the local community by reducing the costs so every child in L8 has the chance to connect with animals and nature.

Park Palace Ponies manager Faye Bedford says receiving the funding, and what it will mean for young people in the area especially, is massive news for the charity.

She says:

“This past year, we listened closely to our community. We spoke with local residents who told us how much they value having our ponies in Toxteth and Dingle, but that rising living costs mean standard lessons and grooming sessions are no longer affordable for many families.

“We try to keep the prices as low as we possibly can anyway, but we have to cover the cost of the horses including the vets’ fees which is so expensive, so unfortunately people who live around here are missing out.

“This funding will mean that, alongside our regular lessons, we’ll be able to remove the financial barriers and do things that are more accessible for people who are local and really need it.

“Even if children don’t want to ride, we know they’re over the moon just to be near the ponies.

“Every day we walk our ponies to graze on the allotments, about 15 minutes each way, and we connect with so many people just on that walk. They stop and want to stroke the ponies and we see how it puts a smile on their faces and brings so much to the community.

“It has been touch and go in the past just to keep going, but now I feel like we’re moving forward in a really positive way.”

Based on Mill Street, Park Palace Ponies currently has seven small ponies, so lessons will be available from age two to a weight limit of eight stones based what they can carry due to their size.

Over the next 12 months, starting in July, the Lottery grant will fund 450 fully subsidised riding lessons, weekly £2 grooming sessions (the price was set by PPP’s youth steering group) and monthly free Open Stable days for the whole community.

Local teenagers will also be invited to volunteer as Herd Leaders to help make the project a reality.

Faye says Park Palace Ponies will announce full details of Urban Herd on social media soon, putting sessions on every month throughout the year, then anyone who lives in L8, Dingle and Toxteth, will be able to apply via email. 

Find out more about Park Palace Ponies here.

Find more Liverpool news here.

Find out what’s good up North on our new platform, The Northern Guide. 

From the best hotels, beauty spots, days out, food and more up North – visit thenorthernguide.com and follow The Northern Guide on Instagram HERE.