We have built Tollbar Equestrian up from a basic stable block to a successful riding school with an outdoor arena since we opened almost 5 years ago. Until recently we’ve only had outdoor facilities, which meant whenever we had poor weather conditions we had to cancel lessons and were limited in the training that we could offer.

We’re now approaching our fifth year in business and were fortunate enough to receive the Adapt and Revive Grant funding from North Kesteven District Council. This meant we could purchase a Racewood riding simulator (that we have named Lloyd) to help support and grow our business.

We found the application process straight forward. We initially found the business plan quite daunting as we have no experience in putting one together, but as a whole it was easy to complete. Throughout the process we often dealt with Karl Flood, who was really helpful and attentive when answering our questions.

Since we’ve installed the riding simulator we’ve had a number of people show interest in lessons, whether that be existing customers that want to practise on the simulator alongside regular lessons to gain a different perspective and develop their confidence, or people that own their own horse and want to improve their technique.

Lloyd, the simulator has allowed us to increase the reach and accessibility of our lessons, students can now work with instructors to perfect their posture and position in a controlled environment. It’s also great that lessons are no longer weather dependent

We are really grateful for the Adapt and Revive grant and look forward to welcoming new and existing customers to meet Lloyd.

Natalie Cuffe , Toll Bar Equestrian Riding School
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