Solid Foundation Equestrian

Solid Foundation Equestrian Horse training with a balance of Natural Horsemanship and English Riding with an emphasis on building trust and connection leading to a strong partnership.

I’m an experienced horsewoman having over 25 years in the equestrian field, with the majority of this time spent starting, training and competing horses for all English disciplines. I have a wealth of knowledge and experience gained from a variety of equestrian professionals as well as a background in vet nursing, farming and animal husbandry enabling me to develop a holistic approach to producing

horses. I am qualified in equine studies/sport horse, coaching and agriculture, as well as being a National Show Hunter judge. I believe building trust and connection are the foundation blocks to a successful partnership. I offer the following services:

• Handling foals, halter and lead training and preparing them for farriers and vets.

• Float training

• Pre starting

• Starting (putting under saddle)

• Bringing horses back into work

• Schooling

• Giving life experience (farm experience can be included)

• Providing competition experience (showing, show hunter, show jumping, dressage)

• Coaching/lessons

📣 Training Space Available 📣Due to a horse unfortunately turning up lame, I have a training space available from 14th Ju...
05/06/2026

📣 Training Space Available 📣

Due to a horse unfortunately turning up lame, I have a training space available from 14th June.

If you’ve been thinking about sending a horse away for handling, schooling or starting under saddle, have a behavioural issue you’re struggling to get to the bottom of, or a horse returning to work after some time off, feel free to get in touch 😊

Winter can actually be a really productive time for training. If you’re short on daylight hours, battling the weather, or just need a helping hand to keep things progressing, I’d be happy to have a chat.

I also have a couple of spaces available throughout winter, so if the 14th June doesn’t suit, feel free to get in touch anyway and we can discuss options. 🐴

I’m very lucky to have access to hills on a working farm, which offers plenty of opportunities for life experience, fitness work and getting horses out into the real world. 🌾🚜🐴

Feel free to flick me a message if you’d like to have a chat. 🥰

“You’ve definitely changed her way of thinking! Thank you ❤️”Messages like this always make my day 🥰Bella came to me bec...
04/06/2026

“You’ve definitely changed her way of thinking! Thank you ❤️”

Messages like this always make my day 🥰

Bella came to me because her owner was struggling with increasingly challenging behaviour under saddle.

As we worked through things, it became clear there were two pieces to the puzzle.

The first was that Bella wasn’t finding it easy to organise her body in a way that served her. Turning, bending and carrying herself through the movement were all much harder for her than they needed to be.

The second was that she had become quite good at avoiding those difficult conversations when things felt hard.

By going back to the foundations, improving her understanding of the aids and helping her find better balance and self-carriage, things started to change very quickly ✨

This week her owner messaged to say:

“Got every canter lead and definitely feels more balanced! Great improvement!!”

For me, the best part isn’t the canter leads or the balance.

It’s hearing that her owner is enjoying riding her again and getting to experience the horse she knew was in there somewhere ❤️

Well done Bella 👏🏻

02/06/2026

B1 & B2 are back in the limelight again… sorry, not sorry 😅🍌🍌

Today both boys had their first sit with a saddle on and passed with flying colours 😍👏🏻

They were both incredibly relaxed and took it all in their stride, but it was also a nice reminder that trust isn’t just one thing. It has layers.

Zippy has proven to be the more opinionated of the pair and likes to confidently express an opinion or three about most things. 🤭

After the Cow and Dinosaur Show™️ yesterday, he wore a saddle for the first time and seemed a little absent from the classroom. He was quite happy to run around the round pen, so I spent some time doing a little join up with him.

It took a while, but once he connected with me his whole demeanour changed. The busy, distracted horse disappeared and in his place was a soft, willing partner who wanted to be part of the conversation. 💞

Today, when I went to hop on, he gave full commitment to presenting to be mounted and was so relaxed he was almost falling asleep at times. 😴🥰

Angus was equally relaxed and took his first sit like he’d done it a hundred times before. Both boys continue to impress with their willingness to learn and sensible attitudes towards new experiences. 👏🏻

One thing I find really interesting with young horses is that the goal isn’t for them to stop thinking for themselves. In fact, I want them to be curious, confident and able to problem solve.

The most encouraging part is when they have a question and, instead of feeling they need to solve everything alone, they start to include you in the conversation.

“Hey, I’m not quite sure about this… what do you think?”

That’s where partnership starts to develop. 💕🐴

It’s pretty special watching the pieces start to come together.

01/06/2026

Today Zippy and Angus were introduced to a dancing dinosaur and a dancing cow. 🦖🐄💁🏼‍♀️

When a specific request from their owners for the dinosaur is made, it’s taken very seriously 🤭👀

I’m not entirely sure what goes on at the races these days, but I don’t usually need much convincing to have a bit of fun. 😂

The goal was simple enough: expose the boys to something unusual and help them learn that strange things in life aren’t always something to worry about.

Needless to say, I think they will both be absolutely fine if they ever encounter a dancing dinosaur carrying an umbrella ☂️🦖 or a dancing cow waving the Solid Foundation Equestrian Flag™️ 🐄🚩 in the future. 🤣👏🏻

The boys took it all remarkably well and were far more sensible than the humans involved. 🫶🏻

At one point I took Angus to the round pen with a saddle on for the first time. When I came back, the wind had picked up and moved the umbrella and bag over beside Zippy, while the dinosaur and cow were flapping away nearby.

Zippy’s response?

Not a care in the world. 😌👏🏻

Rabbit and Cornessa were brought in afterwards.

Rabbit was quite happy to be caught by the dinosaur, but when the cow joined in he immediately decided this was unacceptable and is currently filing a complaint with management. 🙄🤣💁🏼‍♀️

Cornessa, meanwhile, was quite happy with the cow but remains unconvinced that a dinosaur has any practical application in everyday life. 👀🤨🦖

Between the two of them, neither could agree on the nature of the threat. 😂

For the record, Zippy and Angus were much more reasonable about the whole thing 🤍🐴✨

30/05/2026

Today Jay-Jay got to spend some time meeting a few new horses. 🥰

Socialisation is such an important part of a young horse’s development and plays a big role in preparing them for life after weaning. Learning how to interact with different horses, read social cues and build confidence is all part of growing up.

The horses he met today were carefully chosen for their kind and generally sensible personalities to help give him positive social experiences. 🫶🏻

Jay-Jay thought this was a fantastic idea and was very enthusiastic about making new friends. 😍

Candy, however, preferred a different theory.

She quickly decided that Jay-Jay was not actually a foal at all, but rather a highly suspicious cow impersonating a foal. 👀🐄

As soon as Candy sounded the alarm, Shaun sprang into action. Every squeal from his damsel in distress was met with an immediate response from her self-appointed knight in shining armour, who arrived ready to defend her from whatever danger she had discovered. 🐉⚔️😂

Meanwhile, poor Prada was left trying to keep track of her child, who had decided making new friends and running laps around the paddock was far more exciting than staying with Mum. 👀💀

After all the snorting, prancing and dragon impersonations, Shaun eventually found himself a little closer to the terrifying cow-foal than intended… and suddenly wasn’t quite so confident about the whole situation. 🤭😂

Poor Jay-Jay was just trying to socialise.

Poor Prada was just trying to parent.

And Candy and Shaun were busy investigating a conspiracy theory. 🤦🏼‍♀️🐄🐴😂

The introductions may have been carefully planned.

Complete chaos anyway 🤍🐴🤣

Friday night musings after an ice cream, a serious discussion about the probability of Lotto numbers, and the realizatio...
29/05/2026

Friday night musings after an ice cream, a serious discussion about the probability of Lotto numbers, and the realization that horse training often starts with a horse that has concerns… 🍦🎶

📋 Unofficial SFE Intake Assessment Form

☐ Separation anxiety 💔

☐ Trust issues 🤨

☐ Emotional baggage exceeds carry-on allowance ✈️

☐ Strong opinions regarding canter transitions 🎭

☐ Performance varies depending on wildlife 🦆👻

☐ One unresolved life event from several years ago that continues to influence daily decisions 🍃

☐ Thinks every request is a negotiation 🤝

☐ Understands perfectly but has chosen a different path 😌

☐ Has never put a foot wrong but somehow has a reputation 😇

☐ Testing… testing… 📡

☐ Has concerns 👀

☐ Is filing a complaint 📝

☐ Other: “There appears to be a dinosaur.” 🦖

The funny thing is, most horse people are probably reading this and mentally ticking boxes for at least one horse. 👀🤣

In all seriousness though, horse training is rarely just about the riding.

Most horses arrive carrying far more than a lack of education. Confidence, past experiences, coping mechanisms, physical comfort, trust, anxiety and their own unique personalities all play a role in how they learn.

Some travel light.

Others arrive with three suitcases, a carry-on, and emotional baggage that somehow exceeds the airline weight limit 👀.

Some are genuinely worried.

Some are still processing a leaf that moved in 2023 🍃.

Some understand exactly what you’re asking and have simply decided the answer is no.

And some have concerns and would like to file a complaint.

The riding is often the easy part. Helping them unpack everything else is where the real work begins. 🤍🐴

28/05/2026

Cross country day for some of the crew today! 👏🏻🐴

Shaun headed out for his very first outing and his first ever look at cross country jumps… and considering this was only his 3rd time jumping, I was pretty proud of him 👀💪🏻👏🏻

At the start he found it a little hard to focus while taking in the chaos of horses jumping here, there and everywhere 👀😅 but once he realised what the game was, he found his rhythm and started jumping everything I pointed him at.

Well…almost everything 🤭😂 the ditch remained highly suspicious for a while, but eventually he decided maybe it wasn’t actually going to eat him 👏🏻😆

Viggy was beautifully ridden by her lovely owner Lillie, who gave her such a nice confident ride 😍👏🏻

Cornessa had her first cross country jump back since finishing rehab and it’s pretty special reflecting on just how far she has come 💞

Astro also came along for a schooling ride to help work through a challenge his owner has been having. He put in a super effort in between the occasional “Astro moment” 😅🚀

And then there was Charlie 🥹👏🏻

Today was not only his first outing, but also his first ever look at cross country fences — and only his 3rd time jumping 👀💪🏻

Charlie is here to learn to canter after struggling following an incident during racing, and today was the first time he has managed to hold the canter for more than a couple of strides in a straight line 👏🏻😭

Sometimes a change of scenery, a relaxed environment and a few cross country jumps are exactly what a horse needs to help things click 🤍🐴✨

Also a huge thank you to Lillie for helping out today and doubling as videographer 🥰🎥

27/05/2026

Today was a big day for all of the starters! 👏🏻🐴

It was very hard deciding who got the limelight today… so nearly everyone gets a feature 💁🏼‍♀️😆

There’s quite the mixture in work here at the moment, from retired racehorses and future racehorses through to warmbloods, sport horse types and everything in between, but today mostly turned into a case of the older horses taking the youngsters out to show them the ropes. 🤭

First up, Bella headed out with Lillie riding while leading Vega around the farm for her first outing. Star also came along for her first ever ridden farm adventure and was an absolute 🌟, quite happily leading the way for about 80% of the ride 👏🏻. Michelle and her ever reliable Juno came along as support crew 🫶🏻

Next Shaun had his first experience leading another horse, with Angus having his first lead off a horse around the farm while Michelle and her OTTB Marvin came along as backup.

Marvin then backed up again for the next outing with Charlie (OTSB in training 💁🏼‍♀️😂) leading Zippy. Things started off very sensibly… until Charlie decided he would actually prefer to ride solo 👀🤭 which resulted in Marvin getting a crash course in leading to help teach Zippy how to stay in line 😂👏🏻

Kiwi also had an arena school after hacking yesterday, while Viggy had a lovely schooling session with her owner and was very grown up about the whole thing as she continues learning how to use her body correctly and stay straight 🥹👏🏻

The final trio of the day was the cruisiest sunset hack with Sophie riding Rabbit, Adele on her lovely boy Monty, and me on Cornessa 💞

You really can’t beat a stunning day, stunning views, good company and good horses 🤍🐴✨

Also a big thank you to Lillie for coming along to help us today 🥰 and of course to the ever amazing Michelle and Adele for always being willing to jump in and help wherever needed 🫶🏻

26/05/2026

The sunshine must have hit differently yesterday because the horses all decided it was time for zoomies. ☀️😂

Candy started things off with a few laps around the paddock. Shaun watched her for a moment, clearly taking notes, before deciding he should probably demonstrate how it’s really done… cue dragon mode 👀🐉😅💨

Not to be left out, Viggy and Star also joined in, with Viggy apparently discovering her inner Thoroughbred dragon in the process. 👀😂🐉

I love seeing the horses feeling good enough in themselves to play, move freely and enjoy life a bit between their work. 🤍🐴

21/05/2026

A little B1 & B2 update 😉😆

One thing I am big on with young horses is getting those early foundations right.

When Angus and Zippy first arrived, they were essentially leading me to the paddock. Not necessarily in a naughty way, but very much with the mindset of “we’re going this way now.” 😅

Over the last week they’ve done a lot of groundwork focused around trust, connection, and learning to respond to intention, feel, and gentle cues.

Now they are starting to walk with me rather than dragging me from point A to point B. 🫶🏻

Because really… how can we expect to ride in harmony if we can’t first walk in harmony?

They’ve now been leading quietly around the yard and farm beside me rather than ahead of me, and this week they’ve also started learning about presenting to be mounted.

Once that first layer of understanding is there, the next layers become so much easier. 🤍🐴✨

Also… they may have received schoolboy haircuts today because the scissors ✂️ accidentally fell into my hands 🤭💁🏼‍♀️

Address

306 Mound Road, Broomfield
Amberley
7482

Opening Hours

Monday 8:30am - 5pm
Tuesday 8:30am - 5pm
Wednesday 8:30am - 5pm
Thursday 8:30am - 5pm
Friday 8:30am - 5pm

Telephone

+64273634442

Website

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