Our short courses are a great way of learning about the rights and responsibilities around the bridleways, byways and other access which enable you to ride or drive a horse off-road in England and Wales (the situation in Scotland and Northern Ireland is very different). They are designed for our Access Volunteers who are crucial in helping to defend public rights of way, but are open to anyone.
The main series starts with Introduction to equestrian access, and its three sequels: Progressing with equestrian access, The Definitive Map and Modification Orders, and Changes to equestrian access. The sequels can be taken in any order after the Introduction.
One hour courses on Applying for a Modification Order correctly and Using Dobbin (the BHS website for unrecorded route research) compliment the Definitive Map and Modification Orders course in the main series. See prefix Project 2026 in the events below.
All these courses run regularly; others on commons, public inquiries or historical evidence run occasionally.
Most courses are virtual (Zoom or Teams), from one to five hours. If you are interested in a course which is not listed below, please contact access@bhs.org.uk for help.
Click the headings below for more information on each course or, if you know which course you want, skip down to bookings.
Occasional or one-off events may also appear in the list.
Introduction to equestrian access & rights of way (England & Wales)
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Knowing the law about equestrian use of minor highways (byways, bridleways and footpaths) is important for all who ride or drive horses off-road, helping you to be sure of your rights and responsibilities, to build your confidence.
This course provides an insight to the origins of bridleways and byways, the law and records of rights of way and other access, rights and responsibilities, what to do about blocked or difficult to use bridleways and byways and legal changes that can occur.
This is the starter course for our volunteer Access and Bridleway Officers, who are crucial in helping to defend our ability to use public rights of way.
It is a live virtual course, with ample opportunity for interaction, from 9.30 a.m. to 3.30 p.m. (end time may be earlier depending on the group's agreed length of breaks).
Training is essential for BHS Access and Bridleway Officers; however, members of: The BHS, BHS Affiliated Equestrian Access Groups, British Riding Clubs, British Driving Society and British Carriage Driving would find the information useful too, as well as other members of the public interested in rights of way.
Equipment
An internet connection and computer are necessary to view (some people manage with a tablet) but audio can be by phone if your computer does not have speakers and microphone.
Changes to equestrian access & rights of way (England & Wales)
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Knowing the law about equestrian use of minor highways (byways, bridleways and footpaths) is important for all who ride or drive horses off-road, helping you to be sure of your rights and responsibilities, to build your confidence.
This course is a sequel to the Introduction and covers responding to proposals that change bridleways and byways through legal orders (to divert, create or extinguish) and planning applications.
Prior attendance on the Introduction course is normally required.
It is a live interactive course from 9.30 a.m. to 1 p.m. (end time may be earlier depending on the group's agreed length of breaks).
The training is highly recommended for BHS Access and Bridleway Officers; however, members of: The BHS, BHS Affiliated Equestrian Access Groups, British Riding Clubs, British Driving Society and British Carriage Driving would find the information useful too, as well as other members of the public interested in rights of way.
Equipment
An internet connection and computer are necessary to view (some people manage with a tablet) but audio can be by phone if your computer does not have speakers and microphone.
The Definitive Map and Modification Orders (England & Wales)
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Knowing the law about equestrian use of minor highways (byways, bridleways and footpaths) is important for all who ride or drive horses off-road, helping you to be sure of your rights and responsibilities, to build your confidence.
This course is a sequel to the Introduction course, and covers the Definitive Map of Public Rights of Way and how it is modified; researching evidence of use, and making an application to a council for them to add a bridleway or byway.
Prior attendance on the Introduction to equestrian access course is normally required.
This is a live interactive course from 9.30 a.m. to 2 p.m. (end time may be earlier depending on the group's agreed length of breaks).
The training is highly recommended for BHS Access and Bridleway Officers; however, members of: The BHS, BHS Affiliated Equestrian Access Groups, British Riding Clubs, British Driving Society and British Carriage Driving would find the information useful too, as well as other members of the public interested in rights of way.
Equipment
An internet connection and computer are necessary to view (some people manage with a tablet) but audio can be by phone if your computer does not have speakers and microphone.
Progressing with equestrian access (England & Wales)
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Knowing the law about equestrian use of minor highways (byways, bridleways and footpaths) is important for all who ride or drive horses off-road, helping you to be sure of your rights and responsibilities, to build your confidence.
This course is a sequel to the Introduction course, and goes further into practical application using case studies, escalating problems (self-help, s130A, s56), 'green lanes' and increasing inclusion of equestrians in on and off-road schemes.
Prior attendance on the Introduction course is normally required.
This is a live interactive virtual course from 9.30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The event is strongly recommended for BHS Access and Bridleway Officers; however, members of: The BHS, BHS Affiliated Equestrian Access Groups, British Riding Clubs, British Driving Society and British Carriage Driving would find the information useful too, as well as other members of the public interested in rights of way.
Equipment
An internet connection and computer are necessary to view (some people manage with a tablet) but audio can be by phone if your computer does not have speakers and microphone.
Project 2026: Using Dobbin – the BHS 2026 research website (England & Wales)
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Using Dobbin for unrecorded routes. This free online training session is to enable people to start using www.bhsaccess.org.uk/2026 to plot routes of interest and gather and record evidence. Covering registering as a user with the site, plotting routes, uploading images, using the Evidence Library and the National Library of Scotland website.
Equipment
An internet connection and computer are necessary to view (some people manage with a tablet) but audio can be by phone if your computer does not have speakers and microphone.
Project 2026: Making a DMMO application correctly (England & Wales)
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To protect routes from extinguishment in 2031 (previously 2026), it is vital that DMMO applications to record them are correctly made and all the necessary boxes are ticked. By the end of this webinar, participants should understand and be able to fulfil the basic requirements of making an application correctly.
This event is free to attend.
Equipment
An internet connection and computer are necessary to view (some people manage with a tablet) but audio can be by phone if your computer does not have speakers and microphone.
Restoring the Record - researching historical evidence of rights of way
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The Restoring the Record training aims to enthuse, enable, and empower rights of way researchers to make applications for definitive map modification orders to ensure routes that would be extinguished in 2031 are saved from that cut-off date.
Learn how to identify historical routes and the key resources used to study them from two acknowledged experts in the field, Sarah Bucks and Dr Phil Wadey, co-authors of ‘Rights of Way Restoring the Record’. Find out what your evidence can unlock and how to create a systematic research method to investigate your routes.
There are no more scheduled Restoring the Record events this year, but if you are interested, contact the team and a location can be considered for 2025.