Taunton Deane Bridleways Association

07/07/2024

Sorry we have been quiet on our socials.

Just a quick update for our followers.

We have been working behind the scenes to secure venues for both walk trot funrides we ran last year. Sadly we have been unsuccessful in securing a location based on the Quantocks.

We’re still in discussions regarding our annual ride from the Dillington Estate and we’ll update you as soon as we have a firm date, but it’s looking like an autumn ride this year thanks to the generosity of the land owner.

24/04/2024

There are now several herds of Exmoor Ponies located on the Quantock Hills.

*A mixed herd of elderly and young ponies on Cothelstone Hill (seen below)
*An older herd on Lydeard Hill in the first enclosure
*A younger herd on Great Hill towards Triscombe

Some of these ponies can be interested in horses being ridden through their enclosures.

If you do enter enclosures (or any fields) please ensure you shut all gates behind you properly.

Note these ponies are NOT the Quantock ponies that roam the common and hill top.

After the ponies at Cothelstone Hill have ‘escaped’ three times in the last month can we remind everyone to close all gates once you have passed through them? On each occasion they could have been seriously injured on the road or caused an accident. Please be vigilant and report any suspicious behaviour to the Rangers.

27/03/2024

Did you know that the only reason a new gate can be installed on a Public Right of Way is for the containment of livestock, or for the safety of users?

Gates must be a minimum of 5ft between posts on a Bridleway and 10ft on a Byway.

There is nothing in law that states a gate must be operable when mounted however, a gate should not be an inconvenience.

Under no circumstances should a gate on a Public Right of Way be tied or locked shut.

Below is an example of a horse handle which a landowner kindly installed on our behalf on a permissive route.

20/03/2024

Do you know how to identify where the off road routes are in your local area?

In Somerset there is the ROAM Map which shows the local routes, what their definition is and they are always worth checking to see if there are any reported issues with routes, especially if you haven't been up them for a while, or if they are new routes for you.

13/03/2024

Remember if you have a gate on your route which is difficult to open then please report it. Whilst gates are not by law required to be able to be opened when mounted, they are not supposed to inconvenience the user.

The ability to open and close gates with ease is an important skill for both rider and horse and is highly recommended for riding out. 🐎

The training for opening gates will help your horse’s responsiveness generally and being a ‘good gate opener’ is a great credit to you and your horse. 🌳

The method of opening and negotiating a gate while mounted which is recommended by the Society for greatest safety is commonly called ‘heels to hinges’ because the horse is positioned parallel to the gate and facing away from the gate’s hinges. It is considered to give riders most control during the manoeuvre and it is most likely to avoid tack being caught by the gate or latch. 👢

Hacking is a beneficial activity for horse and rider, improving the health and wellbeing of both, as well as providing opportunities for improving your bond with your horse. 🙂

👉🏻If you would like to find out more about How to open gates from horseback in England and Wales please follow the link https://www.bhs.org.uk/go-riding/riding-out-hacking/how-to-plan-a-ride/off-road-gates/

13/03/2024

Do you know who is responsible for what with public right of ways?

Highways Authority - Responsible for protecting and maintaining the road surfaces.

Landowners - Keeping ROW on their land clear and maintaining gates.

Users - Using ROW with consideration, staying within the line of the publicised ROW unless it is obstructed then they may deviate off the recorded ROW.

Local Authorities - Clearing and maintaining routes.

06/03/2024

06/03/2024

Do you know your Public Right of Ways, who can access them and how they should be used?

Bridleway - Users can ride or lead a horse at any time, or they can be used by bicycles. They are not meant to be used by horse drawn carriages.

Restricted Byway - Any kind of non mechanically propelled vehicle.

Byway open to all traffic - Open to all, but any vehicle must be road legal.

Permissive Bridleway - Not a recorded route on a definitive map, but permissive via a landowner. Local Authority has no jurisdiction over it.

Roads - Open to all traffic (including horses!!)

There may be other localised route definitions such as:

Green Lane
Greenway
Shared Use Path

The use of these, and who can access them needs to be clarified locally.

06/03/2024

*West Bagborough*

Good morning

We have been notified by the Rights of Way Officer that the Byway next to the Rising Sun in West Bagborough is totally blocked due to a large fallen tree.

The landowner and ANOB are working to clear this as quickly as possible.

01/03/2024

Team work makes the dream work! 🙌

Last week a local rider informed the Association of a tree down on one of her riding routes.

It was reported via ROAM and 3 days later the Rights of Way Officer made contact with the Association to say the tree had been located and a contractor had been contacted.

The obstruction should be cleared within the coming weeks along with another tree that looks like it is also about to fall.

Only with 👀 on the network can we keep them obstruction free.

Thank you to the local rider who kept us in the loop!

29/02/2024

As we gear up for Spring (yes, it's coming!), now is the time to check your local riding routes that you may not have used much over the winter.

1) Go for a potter up your routes to check they are clear and the gates are working properly.

2) Use the ROAM function to report any issues you find. https://roam.somerset.gov.uk/roam/map

3) Drop us a DM with the reference number, and a brief description of the issue so we can add it to our log, and monitor it.

The earlier any obstructions are reported the more chance we have of getting them cleared.

28/02/2024

Do you want to know what we get up to here at Taunton Deane Bridleways Association?

Our Annual newsletter is now live and available via our website.

Click the link below 👇🏻

Taunton Deane Bridleways Association , TDBA, was formed with the aim of monitoring, protecting, improving and extending the bridleway network in the district. To do this, we liaise with the County...

27/02/2024

❗STOP SCROLLING ❗

Thurs 28 March 📅 Ride Out UK Online Event – An evening with Jenni Nellist, horse behaviourist. 🐴👏🏻

This is a fantastic event that is not to be missed! For just the small donation of £5, Jenni will be giving you an insight into horse and dog behaviour, as well as offering a Q&A at the end to answer your questions about your own animals. ⭐

Jenni is a Certificated Clinical Animal Behaviourist and an Animal Behaviour and Training Council (ABTC) Registered Clinical Animal Behaviourist, who loves nothing more than sharing her expertise with the equestrian community so that they can have better results and relationships with their horses. Jenni has been practising as an animal behaviourist since establishing her South Wales business in 2005. 🥰

All proceeds will go towards the BHS Ride Out Fund. 👍🏻



To book your ticket now 👉🏻 https://buytickets.at/bhsaccess/1152306

27/02/2024

The Associations AGM minutes and accounts for 2023 are now on our website available for public viewing.

01/02/2024

We are thrilled that the current committee for Taunton Deane Bridleway Association will all be retained for 2024 following our AGM.

The committee is made up of five members:

The Chair is Ann Finn who has held the position for many years
The Secretary is Lucy Squire
The Treasurer is Dominique Ricci

The remaining members of the committee are Elaine Ravenscroft and Karen Slade.

Ann and Karen are also volunteer Access and Bridleway Officers for the BHS Access Team which provides wider support to equestrian access and safety.

Domi and Lucy are located on the bottom of the Blackdown Hills around the Wych Lodge.

Ann is located in the North Curry area.

Elaine is located at the top of the Blackdown Hills on the Somerset / Devon Border

Karen is located on the Quantock Hills around the Kingston St Mary / Bishops Lydeard area.

31/01/2024

30/01/2024

🛑 Stop scrolling, only 4 spaces available 🛑

Training Opportunity – Equestrian Common Land 🌳

Join us to find out more about equestrian common land from Bob Milton, BHS Regional Access and Bridleways Officer South East & Commons Advisor BHS South and South East Committees. 🏔️

What is equestrian common land? Want to find out which commons you can legally ride on? Want to learn about the legislation governing access to common land?
This training is free to attend. Hosted online via Microsoft Teams, attend from the comfort of your own home.

🗓️ Tuesday 6 February
⌚ 18:00-20:00
🎫 www.bhs.org.uk/about-us/our-access-work/off-road-access-in-england-and-wales/access-and-rights-of-way-training/

29/01/2024

🐴📣 Could you help us understand the continued pressures horse owners are facing during the cost of living crisis?

📋 You may remember that last winter, as a member of NEWC (National Equine Welfare Council), we conducted a similar survey. We now need your help to continue understanding the challenges and concerns that horse owners are facing and the potential impacts on equine welfare (regardless of whether you participated in the previous survey).

The survey should take around 10 minutes to complete. Take the survey here 👉 https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/CoLSurvey/

21/01/2024

Stay safe everyone during tonight's storm, and remember, you are going to see fallen trees and branches on your local routes from tomorrow.

If you can safely clear your paths then do so, but if not, then report the blockage via the ROAM system.

The Rights of Way Officers are very busy at the moment so users need to be patient whilst they deploy contractors to clear routes.

09/01/2024

Thank you to those who have renewed their membership for 2024.

If you're still undecided then please consider whether you have interacted with us and the work we do, or enjoyed a bridleway that we have been involved in maintaining. If the answer is yes then why not show your support by joining for the modest fee of £10 annually.

For this fee you get years of relationship management with Local Authorities, Rights of Way Officers, Land Owners, AONBs, Forestry Commissions and the BHS. We also arrange controlled and safe walk and trot rides, tack sales and the odd fun show! Remember that all members receive discounted rates.

The Association also has (modest) funds to spend on our local routes, or to contribute towards larger works needed. These funds are raised through membership and the events we run which are organised on a purely volunteer basis.

Membership can be done quickly and easily by using the link below.

Why not join our virtual AGM on 31st January to find out more about the work we do, or ask us a question about a route in your area.

Go on, you know you want to.....

The Price for a year membership is only £10 and runs from the 1st of January YYYY to the 31st of December YYYY Follow the link below on memberMojo to apply : ...

27/12/2023

We hope everyone has been enjoying Christmas.

Today feels like it could be an admin day with
the strong winds!

So why not renew your Bridleway Association membership for 2024 today.

Renewal is easy to do via our online payment system.

£10 for a years membership gets you a significant discount of any of our events, plus it’s a very modest fee that goes towards supporting the work we do with landowners and local authorities to keep routes open for riding.

Keep your eyes peeled for our annual newsletter which reviews the work we have done in 2023.

Our AGM will be held on 31st January via zoom.

12/12/2023

🛑Don't forget to submit your form 🛑

Be a part of the first ever Thoroughbred Census 2023💪🏻

The Thoroughbred Census is part of British Racing's five-year welfare strategy 'A Life Well Lived' led by the Horse Welfare Board. 🏇🏻🏇🏻

Many former racehorses go on to enjoy a variety of second careers, and the census will help build a wealth of intelligence on the lives they lead. 😃

Britain's first ever thoroughbred census is launched to help improve traceability of former racehorses after they retire from the sport. 🐴

🙋🏻‍♀️If you own a former racehorse, complete and submit the census today to help improve the traceability of thoroughbreds in Great Britain and ensure they live a happy and healthy life after
leaving the sport.

📆Closing date 31 December 2023.

To complete the Thoroughbred Census 2023 today 👇🏻 https://www.ror.org.uk/registration

05/12/2023

Looking for something to inspire and motivate for the coming season?

Why not book on for an evening with Alex Bragg organised by the Quantock Pony Club.

27/11/2023

Meet our local BHS Access Officer Phil Hackett.

Phil is the fountain of knowledge and provides support to all volunteers who work at maintaining routes throughout the South West.

🙌🏻 Meet our Access Field Officer, Philip Hackett 🙌🏻

What area do you cover?
I cover the South West – from Cornwall, my home county of Devon, Dorset, Wiltshire, Somerset and Gloucestershire, where I grew up. 😀

How long have you been in this role?
Almost 4 years as an Access Field Officer (AFO), having served an apprenticeship as a BHS Access & Bridleways Officer and a BHS County Access & Bridleways Officer. 💪🏻

What does your role entail?
The simple answer is “anything access” – although there is a team of AFO’s who cover England, Wales and Scotland we all work differently adapting to our region, trying to rediscover the lost routes before the 2031 deadline – but realise that our applications may not be examined by councils for another 30! I am keen on developing off road routes – in particular, persuading local authorities that it is safe to put horses on cycleways, and the best value for money is to allow equestrians to share new Active Travel routes, especially as the region has the highest number of road incidents in the country. I have a number of major road schemes in my area which give a fantastic opportunity to create more equestrian routes and ‘join the dots’ where bridleways have been severed because of increasing traffic on the roads. Living in the wettest part of the country the number of bridleway complaints seem to escalate – and councils resources seem to dwindle making me a progress chaser for impassable bridleways! 🌳🌿

What do you do in your spare time?
I am always doing something – especially as I am a District Councillor with 8 Parishes in my ward with Parish and District Council meeting to attend in the evenings! I love horse racing having ridden as an amateur jockey in the 1980’s and then having a crack at the Newbury Charity Race last year finishing in the traditional last place for BHS employees! I go racing as often as time permits as a spectator and sometimes lead up runners for a local trainer – this year I was lucky enough to lead up the winner of the Ladies Derby at Epsom. I have 2 horses, 4 cats and a blind dog who loves to go on long walks with me. With Dartmoor on my doorstep, I can be out in the wilds away from civilisation in under 20m minutes from the office. 🏇🏻