18 July 2023
Test Case Study
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26 November 2025
Paul and his daughter, Amelie
Paul experienced the impact of the Discovery Programme through a referral that was made for his daughter, Amelie, when she was 14. Amelie continued to take part in the programme throughout her final year of secondary education after years school moves and interactions with social services and children’s mental health services. The Discovery Programme was a secure environment that she looked forward to attending. Amelie and her father continue to visit the centre for social occasions. Amelie struggled for a very long time with her mental health. We saw many education, social care and mental health professionals from when she was 11 years old. Many of them had a positive impact but the most significant turning point I witnessed was when we had a referral to the Discovery Programme at HorseWorld. It was a lifeline. Covid had a massive impact on her transition to secondary school. Until then she engaged well with school. Home life was difficult and a series of therapists, although beneficial, were only able to make temporary bonds with her. Amelie spent some time with hospital education service and had to move secondary school on several occasions. We got an Education Health and Care Plan in place and we were looking for other forms of engagement as she was not in school at all by the time she was 15 years old. HorseWorld was suggested and I was initially sceptical that she would go but she said that she would take a look. This was a big moment for us. I took her over and she fell in love with the place. The staff were fantastic from day one and the whole concept really worked for her as she is hypersensitive. It felt so genuine, warm, welcoming and empathetic. I could see that Amelie was relaxed so I started to bring her every Monday while I worked in a little space that was made available. Every day she would give me a full debrief on the horses she’d been working with and their activities. It had been such a long time since she’d looked forward to any regular activity. She learnt a lot about how horses mirror emotions. She loved it so much, not once did Amelie make an excuse not to go and we were able to continue the funding through her EHCP for further sessions until she finished her education. Long-term I can see that it has taught her so much about emotional regulation and her participation marked a turning point on her harmful behaviour. She is in such a different place now and is attending college. I think the outcomes of somewhere like HorseWorld and the Discovery programme are impossible to measure because they are going to be all over that person’s entire life. What Amelie experienced on the Discovery Programme will be with her for the rest of her life.
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26 November 2025
Rachel and her son, Charlie
Rachel Beckingsale fought for her son, Charlie, to receive alternative learning at HorseWorld’s Discovery programme after years of disrupted mainstream education. By the age of ten, Charlie had attended three different primary schools and Rachel was struggling to get his needs met. Through the mediation process with her local authority she was able to have alternative provision funded through a personal payment plan for specialist support. By the time we could access the Discovery Programme at HorseWorld, Charlie had not attended full-time education for two and a half years. He was unwell, his needs could not be met in school and he was highly anxious. I came across the provision through an online discussion thread for parents who had children with autism. Charlie had not had any interaction with horses before but had always loved domestic animals. He had nothing else going on to support him at that time so I was determined that he should try it. Although he had a legal right to some alternative provision there was a lot of discussion between ourselves, the local authority and his school to sort the payment. HorseWorld were helpful from the outset by providing all the relevant information which supported our bid for a place. Until then, although his needs were relatively low-level, Charlie was at home because of the emotional and physical attacks at school. On his first day at HorseWorld, Charlie was really anxious. He had no trust in adults apart from myself and his dad. We asked him to go in for at least five minutes to give it a go and we managed to get him out of the car. Straight away we were impressed by how his facilitator, Kaleigh, met him at the gate and spoke to him on his own level. She saw Charlie as a boy, rather than through his diagnosis. She asked him what he liked to do and because he was practising the splits, that is how they started the session. Kaleigh walked side by side with him rather than staring face to face, which is really helpful for Charlie. Starting with a Shetland pony, they accessorised it and took it around the courtyard which was the start of his joyful time at HorseWorld. From that first session he was desperate to go back. As we were not going out as a family it became his one regular contact with the outside world that he looked forward to. He wasn’t frightened and his confidence built through a sense of purpose by caring for the animals. As Charlie benefited from the non-verbal connection with the horses and it felt refreshing and healthy to be outdoors the programme worked for us from the outset. As the first six-week programme was such a success we were able to fund two more terms through Charlie’s personal budget, provided by the local authority. Leading his favourite horse, Archie, around the arena without reins was the most significant sign for us that Horseworld was working for Charlie. All his schools told us that Charlie had could not concentrate, which impacted his ability to learn, but here he was able to relax and lead a horse only through body language. Since then he has been able to catch up academically. I really appreciated the way the HorseWorld staff stepped up at different points to support Charlie when he was having a difficult time with a transition to a Special School. It shows a real commitment to young people that they care enough to be involved with detailed reports and visits even though their official programme has completed. Thanks to their ability to bridge any gaps in Charlie’s educational journey and keep in touch, he is now an ambassador for HorseWorld. The bespoke approach from HorseWorld was exactly what you would want from an alternative provider. We could not be prouder of Charlie now he is back in education and engaging with the world.
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26 November 2025
Zoe, Safeguarding Lead at Kings Oak Academy
Zoe is the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead at Kings Oak Academy, Kingswood. She has responsibility for safeguarding and pastoral care throughout the school, in addition leads on Alternative Learning Provisions. Zoe first commissioned HorseWorld three years ago when looking for an alternative provision for a child who had expressed an interest in animal care. She has since placed eight children between the ages of 12 and 14 in the Discovery Programme. After a discussion in our student support group we’ll make a referral for the HorseWorld Discovery programme for children who are either educated off-site or as part of a bespoke supportive programme. They don’t need to have an Education Health and Care Plan for us to make a referral. I think it's been really positive. Some of our students start really nervous or haven’t experienced much of the outdoors and green spaces or animal care. In terms of building confidence, it has been very positive. Our relationship with the Discovery programme started thanks to the impact it had on one particular 12-year-old child we referred. We had significant concerns and at the time they were being educated off-site. The whole experience was really positive for them. It didn’t matter to us if they were fully engaged or not, but because they were taken somewhere quite different and could experience a calm atmosphere. Working with quiet and gentle horses promoted a feeling of safety. After we’ve placed a student, we collect all the feedback and look at the impact that it’s had. We also look at if any useful strategies or relationships have developed during the programme so we can build on this progress. I'm a massive advocate for the programme being extended and available for more children.
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