Aim RDA

We’re Aim RDA (registered charity no. 1208952), the newest member group of the Riding for the Disabled Association (RDAUK). We’re aiming high, and we need your help to achieve our big dreams.

Aim stands for “Ability, Independence, Motivation”: our core values. We connect disabled people with horses for inclusive experiences in the saddle and beyond. RDA’s motto is “it’s what you can do that counts”; our mission is to empower disabled participants to find out what “makes it count” and help them achieve it. In a Paralympic year, with grassroots RDA alumni forming 75% of Team GB Para Dressage, it’s important to remember that potential for RDA participants is limitless. We believe in that potential.

Founded by a passionate volunteer team with more than forty years’ collective experience within the RDA movement, Aim RDA is excited to be working with two venues to deliver sessions: Lambourn RDA (RG17), a well-established group with its own centre, and Shrivenham Equestrian Centre (SN6), a friendly and dynamic riding centre which is also part of the Armed Forces Equine Charity. This locates us in RDA’s South Region, which includes Oxfordshire, Hampshire, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire. This area already receives more demand for RDA services than existing groups are able to fulfil, so is an ideal location for a new RDA group. 

We have been working hard for the past few months to establish a pilot group of volunteers and participants for Aim RDA, as well as registering the group with RDAUK and the Charities Commission. Now these first stages are complete, it’s full steam ahead: we are ready to work on expanding Aim RDA and securing its position in the RDA community.

WHAT ARE YOU SUPPORTING?

Running an RDA group comes with a variety of costs, even though Aim RDA does not currently operate its own facilities. Our crowdfunder is a ground-up campaign: we have set-up costs to meet, as well as present and future running costs (including being able to set up a bursary fund for participants from low-income backgrounds), and larger costs connected to future aspirations. It’s difficult to beat riding and contact with horses for the physical, emotional, and social benefits offered to disabled participants, but this all comes at a cost. 

Aim RDA is a non-profit organisation, and will rely heavily on income from donations, fundraising, and grants, alongside fees charged to participants.

Our Crowdfunder will be used to contribute to Aim RDA’s short, medium, and long term costs:

• Short term: getting started at both Lambourn and Shrivenham venues; building equipment and tack supplies; essential administrative and training costs such as DBS checking and first aid

• Medium term: subsidising riding fees for those in need; horse and venue hire; larger equipment purchases

• Long term: further large equipment costs; purchase of group-owned horses; support for competitive and other additional participant opportunities; expansion of session provision

HOW WILL YOUR FUNDING BE USED?

Donations large or small can help Aim RDA reach its goals in many ways:

• £5 would buy equipment for use during RDA sessions: cones, buckets, bean bags, or even something more creative

• £25 would hire a horse for an hour for use in an Aim RDA session

• £10 would cover the administration costs of a new volunteer joining Aim RDA and receiving an enhanced DBS check

• £20 would buy a set of adapted stirrups to enable disabled participants to ride safely

• £30 would buy a set of adapted reins for a rider with physical disabilities

• £50 would subsidise a month of riding lessons for a disabled participant who would otherwise struggle to access RDA

• £60 would pay for an RDA coach’s essential first aid training

• £100 would fund an adjustable riding helmet which could be used by a variety of riders to enable their safety in RDA sessions

• £175 would pay for the entry fees and accommodation for a rider to attend the RDA national championships at Hartpury College

• £500 would pay for a large portable mounting block to enable disabled riders to access their sessions safely

• £1000 would fund a full set of dressage arena boards, to enable riders to train in a correctly sized space

• £5,000-10,000 would purchase a horse or pony, carefully sourced for suitability for Aim RDA activities and for priority use by our participants

Most importantly, every donation goes towards creating opportunities for disabled children and adults; making the equestrian world more inclusive; and making it possible for Aim RDA to aim high from the very start.

STAY CONNECTED

Find out more about us and stay up to date with our progress via our website, Instagram, and Facebook. We welcome questions from the general public about our work, as well as enquiries from prospective volunteers or participants. Don’t forget to watch our campaign video for insight into the impact of RDA on some of our founding Aim riders.

If you’d like to know more about riding or volunteering with us, please contact [email protected].

If you have a publicity enquiry or offer of fundraising help beyond our Crowfunder, please contact [email protected].