Recreational Awards FAQ’s

Pony Stars, Horse Explorers and Challenge awards are for anyone who wants to improve their horse knowledge or their riding skills, it doesn’t matter what previous experience they have with horses, or if they are a complete beginner.

BHS membership is not required for any participant. We would encourage participants to join so they can gain the many benefits of BHS membership. Participants can join online or by calling the membership team on 02476 840506.

There are no age restrictions on any of the awards. Our award products have suggested age ranges, but this is just a guide. We encourage you to work with the participant or their parent/guardian to decide on the best product for them:

• Pony Stars. Our Junior Awards for the under 12s
• Horse Explorers. Our awards for 13-17 year olds
• Challenge Awards. Our awards for over 18s

Yes, absolutely! All of our award products are completely flexible, and you and your participants can pick and mix the awards to suit their skills, experience and ambitions. You can begin at any award, at any level. The only exception to this is Ride Safe silver award must be achieved before moving on to Ride Safe gold or platinum awards.

Our award products (Pony Stars, Horse Explorers and Challenge Awards) are only delivered and assessed by BHS Accredited Professional Coaches and BHS Approved Centre coaches. There is no compulsory minimum coach qualification to be held, but we do advise that Approved Centre coaches that hold the Stage 2 Complete Horsemanship are recommended to be guided by a Stage 3 Coach in Complete Horsemanship when delivering a course. However, it is the responsibility of the centre proprietor/manager to ensure their staff are suitably experienced to deliver coaching sessions they are allocated to.

Formal training to deliver our awards is not compulsory, but we encourage you to attend an information session specific to the set of awards you wish to deliver, before you get started to familiarise yourself with all there is to know. Information sessions are available for Pony Stars, Horse Explorers and Challenge Awards, if you would like to join a session, please contact the Education Team.

You can deliver our award products (Pony Stars, Horse Explorers, Challenge Awards) within a BHS Approved Riding Centre or on a freelance basis (if you are an Accredited Professional Coach). If you are freelance, the awards can be delivered at the participant’s livery yard using the participant’s horse or horses (the livery yard does not have to be a BHS Approved Livery Yard), or at a club ground, for example a British Riding Club ground if delivering a course for a BRC group. We would advise you to check that the venue hosting the session has appropriate public liability cover in place for the hiring out/use of the facilities for the lesson. This information should be found on the policy schedule. Coaches cannot deliver any BHS recreational award product within non-BHS Approved Riding Centres.

If the participants do not have their own horses, or their horses are not suitable, the awards must only be delivered at a BHS Approved Riding Centre. If you are in doubt, please contact us before you begin your course and we will be happy to advise further. BHS recreational awards (Pony Stars, Horse Explorers, Challenge Awards) cannot be delivered within non-BHS Approved centres.

The theory only awards (currently as part of the Challenge Awards, the Horse Health and Horse Knowledge Part One and Two and the Breeding series of awards) can be delivered in any suitable classroom type setting, or online. If you are delivering them from a riding centre, it must be a BHS Approved Riding Centre.

If you coach outside of the UK and Ireland the above rules apply. We advise that you check you have the necessary insurance in place depending on the country you are in. Just be aware that you may have to adapt some of the content based on different husbandry practices outside of the UK.

If your riding school is BHS Approved, absolutely! If your riding school is not BHS Approved, you will not be eligible to deliver any BHS recreational award product. For further information about becoming BHS Approved contact our Approvals team on approvals@bhs.org.uk, or call 02476 840509.

Information sessions that we host for coaches are free.

There is a cost to purchase the resource packs, per participant, which varies depending on which product you deliver. This will all be explained in an information session or listed in the relevant Coach Handbook.

It is up to you to set the fees for training and delivery of the recreational award products. We recommend you factor the costs of the resource pack into your course fees. The awards should easily be integrated into your clients everyday riding or stable management lessons.

The costs for training and assessing participants for our recreational awards are set by yourself. We have kept our costs for resources as low as possible, so we are not unable to provide any further discounts. We have applied ‘bulk buy discounts’ to some of our resources which you can take advantage of to reduce your costs. You may wish to offer discounts to different groups of clients at your discretion.

This depends on the product you are delivering. There are different resources for Pony Stars, Horse Explorers and Challenge Awards. The resources and rewards available for participants, how to purchase them, and when to reward them, will be discussed during a coach information session, or you can find out these details in the relevant Coach Handbook on the APC Hub.

There is a minimal fee to pay for these resources, to cover our costs.

This is completely up to you; there are no set time limits. As part of the resources package for you, are suggestions and ideas for content to include in your sessions. Following these session plans is not compulsory, and we encourage you to adapt them to suit your participants, the facilities, time of year and horses available to you. You should expect and plan to spend more time on some areas, or repeat sessions, to build participant confidence and allow them time to achieve the skills required for the task.

There are no formal assessments required for any of the recreational products. You, the coach can train and sign off your participants for all of the awards on an ongoing, informal basis.

If you are an Accredited Professional Coach and have opted to include the insurance within your membership package, you are covered to coach riders on their own horse. The Care, Custody and Control cover also allows you to handle that horse during demonstrations, as appropriate. Approved Centres must abide by their own riding school insurance conditions.

For more information on your insurance cover provided within your APC membership, please go to the APC Hub.

We would also advise the coach to check that the venue hosting the session has appropriate public liability cover in place for the hiring out/use of the facilities for the lesson.

Technically a Riding School License is required when tuition in riding takes place, this includes polo, ridden pony parties, hunter hirelings etc. If pony parties (whereby pony is not sat upon) were used as an example comparison, then a ‘stable management’ or lungeing activity could fall under the requirement for an Animal Exhibits License. At the moment it will be at the discretion of the Local Authority interpretation of the Defra Procedural Guidance that they operate under. We would suggest that you contact your Local Authority and ask for written confirmation. If the Local Authority confirms in writing that a Riding School License is not required, if you are an APC (and opted into the insurance as part of the APC package) you should contact SEIB for further guidance on 0345 4500634. If you have not opted for insurance cover with your membership, you should contact your own insurance provider.

This will vary from each Local Authority, as they issue the license. The advice given to local councils from the Government is available to read here www.local.gov.uk/open-business-lga-guidance-locally-set-licence-fees. Technically the Riding School License is required when tuition in riding takes place, this includes polo, ridden pony parties, hunter hirelings etc. If pony parties (whereby pony is not sat upon) were used as an example comparison, then a ‘stable management’ activity could fall under the requirement for an Animal Exhibits License. At the moment it will be at the discretion of the Local Authority interpretation of the Defra Procedural Guidance that they operate under. We would suggest that you contact your Local Authority and ask for written confirmation.

This would be acceptable as long as the arrangement is between the two participants, and you (the APC) does not have involvement in selecting/pairing horse and rider. Both participants must ensure they have public liability cover as if there is a claim it may be directed to the owner or rider and the APC policy only covers the instruction element.

There is no cover for the hiring out of facilities/arenas etc, this should fall under the property insurance.

These activities are all acceptable as long as they are carried out during the lesson and not as a separate class, this is acceptable under the APC policy.

As an APC you can deliver the awards at the participant’s livery yard using the participant’s horse or horses (the livery yard does not have to be a BHS Approved Livery Yard), or at a club ground, for example a British Riding Club ground if delivering a course for a BRC group. Coaches cannot deliver any BHS recreational award product within non-BHS Approved Riding Centres.

We would recommend that you encourage participants to volunteer at a BHS Approved Centre, if volunteering at another centre the centre must have relevant insurance in place and be able to take responsibility for volunteers. 

Participants can volunteer at their livery yard; however, the livery yard owner/proprietor would be required to take responsibility for volunteers and must have relevant insurance in place.

Participants may be able to volunteer with British Riding Clubs, please contact your local club for further guidance or refer to the BRC website.

The Riding for Disabled Association may have opportunities for young people to volunteer. Find an RDA group to volunteer for https://www.rda.org.uk/rda-groups/

Yes, participants may assist you in your coaching sessions and complete all sections of the award under your supervision. APC’s must produce risk assessments (with updates as required) for all activities undertaken by the participants as part of the awards process.

The BHS recreational award products are designed for horse owners, loaners, recreational riders and anyone else who wants to learn more about horses and develop their skills and knowledge for personal achievement. The awards are not industry recognised qualifications for the professional market.

If you have clients that aspire to work in the equestrian industry, we have dedicated professional pathways which will help them do just that. As an APC or Approved Centre, you can offer training towards these qualifications too.

If you have clients that are aiming for a career in the equestrian industry, we recommend they sit BHS Stage 1 Care and Ride, instead of the challenge awards. BHS Stage 1 will prepare them for future assessments, and their career.

However, there is a direct entry link from Horse Explorers Core Awards and Challenge Awards to the BHS Career Pathway for participants who may wish to transition to our suite of professional qualifications. Copies of the award certificates must be seen by the Education Team before we can approve a direct entry application request. Please read our guidance on direct entry for further information on our process.

Groom Pathway

Completion of the following Horse Explorers/Challenge Awards will provide entry to BHS Stage 2 Care* and Stage 2 Lunge*

• About the Horse - Silver

Groom with Riding Pathway

Completion of the following Horse Explorers/Challenge Awards will provide entry to BHS Stage 2 Ride*

• About the Rider – Silver

Complete Horsemanship Pathway

Completion of the following Horse Explorers/Challenge Awards will provide entry to BHS Stage 2 Care*, Stage 2 Lunge* and BHS Stage 2 Ride*:

• About the Horse - Silver
• About the Rider - Silver

Upon completion of the Stage 2 Care, Lunge and Ride, you can then progress to the Stage 2 Coaching within the Complete Horsemanship Pathway.

Ride Leader Pathway

Completion of the following Horse Explorers/Challenge Awards will provide entry to BHS Ride Out Stage 2*:

• About the Horse - Silver
• About the Rider - Silver

BHS Stage 2 Care is also required to achieve the Ride Leader Stage 2 qualification.

*Please note the minimum age requirement for a participant to sit any Stage 2 Care, Lunge or Ride assessment is 14 years old and to be a BHS Gold Member.