Children and Teenagers
This work is especially good for children and teenagers. It provides a safe space for them to explore and learn about themsleves- emotional and behavioural. We believe the best way to learn this is through experiential learning so the individual discovers what does and doesn’t work for them, giving them a sense of empowerment. Working outside in nature and with horses creates a very natural and calm environment to explore themselves in. Learning about emotions, relationship dynamics and behaviours from a young age helps to increase confidence thus helping the individual to embrace and strive to do what they want to do with their life.
Children
We work with children from the age of 6 upwards, however, depending on the child we do sometimes work with younger children so please get in touch to discuss further. Parent/guardian are present at all times throughout the session.
Teenagers
We work 1-1 with teenagers either with the guardian present or not- this is the young person and parents choice. There are also times when it is useful for parent/guardian and teenager to work together and this is decided by the teenager, parent and facilitator.
Testimonial
"I wanted to let you know, how very valuable Grace found her sessions with you and your lovely horses. It has really helped her to understand that how she is with people, can have a big impact on how people will react to her - such an important concept to grasp." Gillian Southall (Mother of 17 y.o.)
Vulnerable children and teenagers
We work with vulnerable children and teenagers either on a 1-1 basis or in small groups. If you are an organisation and would like to arrange a day or half a day workshop for a group in your care please get in touch to discuss and we can create something bespoke to suit your needs.
Spending time with horses can help young people to feel calm
Young people often find they can express themselves easier around horses (and donkeys!)
Looked After Children
A lot of our child based work is with Looked After Children. We did a research project in 2014 to pilot our work here with Dr Amelia Roberts.
We then went on to run a years lottery funded project for East Sussex Foster Care Association in 2016/2017. We were able to offer 25 Looked after children x6 1-1 sessions each.
Since then we have worked with other foster agencies. We always recommend 6 sessions in the first instance. For young people who really take to the work more sessions can be arranged.
Testimonial
"Like every child, Looked After Children need and deserve to feel loved cared for and supported and children entering the care system are no exception. At the very least these children and young people will be feeling the effects of emotional trauma. Many will have experienced some kind of neglect or abuse in its many guises and are very likely to be dealing with the aftermath of witnessing domestic violence. Unsurprisingly, these children often also feel a sense of abandonment and carry the burden of a low self-esteem which makes fitting in with their more fortunate peer group a struggle.
Alongside the importance of stability and building consistent and trusted relationships comes the important question of how best to reach these children. East Sussex Foster Care Association want Looked After Children to know that they can recover from past trauma and develop every talent, attitude, quality and characteristic needed to reach their potential, succeed in life and build an incredible future.
By working with Intuitive Horse young people and their carers have been astounded at just how effective it can be for a young person (watched by their carer) to develop an emotional connection to one of these beautiful animals. Trusting others may come naturally to some but when you have been hurt young people can become fearful of making relationships and can struggle to be around others. Many foster carers reported that it was as if the horse understood the vulnerability of the young person and was drawn to them quite ‘intuitively’ as the name of this marvelous project suggests. Creating a bond over time with the horse has enabled many young people involved in this project to get in touch with their own feelings and start to rebuild their own self-worth as they begin to see the horse as a friend who accepts them unconditionally." Susanne Beesley Chair to East Sussex Foster Care Association