Dedicated RDA Volunteers to Receive top Honour from HRH, The Princess Royal

Two of the region’s most dedicated Riding for the Disabled volunteers have been honoured by HRH the Princess Royal in her role as President by being awarded the top accolade.

Carol Rycroft from Court Meadow RDA Group (nr Haywards Heath) and Rosemary Harrison from Cranleigh RDA Group (Surrey) and also a Regional Instructor have received the President’s Award which is only open to “Nominees who have given at least 30 years' service to RDA and have shown exceptional dedication to the Association or one of the Member Groups”.

Rosemary Harrison

Rosemary Harrison was nominated for numerous reasons including the range of roles and activities that she has undertaken spanning Coach, Trustee County Coach, Training Adviser and Regional Committee member. As County Instructor of Surrey (the largest county in the Region) she has been very influential in raising the standard of coaching in Surrey to its current, professional level. She has displayed a total reliability and engagement with the RDA aims, giving support, advice and practical help at all times

Rosemary joined Cranleigh in January 1986 and soon became a Coach on the Thursday morning ride: she is still coaching this session, 30 years on. She teaches with the utmost care and professionalism, frequently going above the norm to enhance her rider’s experience and this has included her learning Makaton to aid communication. With a background in nursing she understands the many syndromes and disabilities which are encountered, enabling her to explain the individual rider’s needs more clearly to her volunteers. Whatever the individual’s issue, she has the patience to encourage them to progress to the best of their ability with care and compassion. One of her adult riders, Martin Matthews, who started as a nervous, unbalanced rider recovering from an accident, is now in the British Para Dressage Team.

Carol Rycroft

Carol Rycroft joined Court Meadow Group RDA (for children with severe learning difficulties) in 1985 and over more than 30 years she has given 100% positive energy to everything, whether colourful additions to hats and boots for competitions, or designing a badge after the Group won the Queen’s Award in 2004. Her passion and enthusiasm has never waned, even through severe periods of ill health. She continuously strives to bring out the best in everyone, developing the next generation. She is always there to help and advise, supporting the concept of RDA Groups sharing experience and expertise.

From the outset, Carol immediately spotted the Group’s potential and need for structure and volunteered to become Secretary, which coincided with a move to Ditchling Stud and its larger premises, where Carol’s energising influence started to make a huge difference.

Her high standards and organisational skills had an immediate impact on the children and she has been keen to ensure that the progression and development the children were making is shared widely, both by involving her riders in the “Special Olympics” and national RDA activities but also by developing the Group’s programmes with Fun Days, Stable Management teaching, Horse Care and Socialisation.

Carol is both the unassuming ‘backbone’ and ‘engine room’ of the Group where her expert guidance and mentoring have built a solid foundation from which children and volunteers alike have blossomed and grown.