Sparrow Court Farm Livery

22/09/2025

Ben and Hugo had a lovely round in the discovery at Felbridge on Saturday 👏🏻

Then back to the yard and Ben rode 4yr old Freddie who’s recently been backed. He had his first solo ride in the arena so just working on getting him forward and confident! Such a good boy 👏🏻

26/05/2025

Snoozy bank holiday morning for these two 😴

19/05/2025

The woods are beautiful at the moment, so nice to listen to the birds as you’re riding through 🐥🐦‍⬛🌷

01/03/2025

We are loving working with Alfred or as Alison calls him Fred, Frank, Alfie!!! He was like many veterans starting to show some sign of wear and tear which crept up due to his owner having ill health. He went to a new home who just felt he wasn’t right and so together with his owner they decided to treat and rehab Alfred, he’s 15 years old but if we get this right he could have years ahead of him! Alfred has some arthritis in his spine (not kissing spine) which was making him very stiff, he had completely locked up behind the saddle area and his tail was very wonky and he looked lame. We started our journey with the aim to restore Alfred to his former glory and a pain free existence in early January after he’d been rested and medicated and rested again. Alison began groundwork which continued for weeks and will continue around his ridden sessions also working at his pace and constantly checking that he is comfortable. Alfred had been carrying himself incorrectly for so long and compensating due to discomfort so working with the vet we needed to do a total reset with the aim to produce a pain free horse who is able to work correctly, strengthen and find it easy to carry his rider and we will do a full handover so that this can be continued at home. His owners come and watch regular update sessions and together with all the specialists, The Osteopathic Vet, Dentist, Farrier, Saddler and a good diet we are confident he will come good 🤞

➡️ We will keep the update coming 😊

23/02/2025

Productive weekend at Sparrow Court Farm!

Alison has been back to back teaching so lots has been learnt! It’s always nice to see the progression in both the horse and rider from the start of the lesson to the end. Rosa even swapped dressage for jumping and had a play on Alison’s youngster Monza! 😱

21/02/2025

Look at this lovely boy! He is here for his rehabilitation livery as he’s had injections into his spine for arthritic changes.

We are working with his vet and will keep you updated on his progress! 🫶

17/11/2024

This! 😎💪

Yes, we back our horses at 3. They go up and down the lane with an older horse for a few days and if they’re strong enough they 𝑚𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 wtc in the arena a couple of times before they go back to grass and we won’t do anything with them again until they are 4.

At 4, they come in and out of the field for a few weeks work at a time - mostly hacking with the odd day in the school and the even more occasional jump. We will take them Xc schooling once (or twice if they need to go twice) and they will jump round a small course of fences before the year is out. They won’t be at every 4yo class in the country or going to shows week in week out…

Now by this point we probably no longer own the horse 🤣 because our clients love how we produce them and come looking for them. But if we still have them at 5years old - then they will start to do a few shows but built on the same mantra as their 4yo year - in and out of the field for a few weeks work at a time with lots of hacking and more pole/cavalettis than jumps. It’s about teaching them balance, relaxation and suppleness - it’s not about winning classes or even jumping clear rounds at this stage. The horse needs to have a conscience but it’s your job to get him to the fence in good balance and it’s his job to get his legs out of the way.

A very wise horseman told me many years ago “horses are born with only so many jumps in them - don’t use them up unnecessarily”. And it stuck with me forever. Train and produce for longevity, not a short term monetary or ego goal.

16/08/2024

16/06/2024

Back to dressage this weekend for Sparrow Court Farm! After the last show where they had a few mistakes, Rosa and Enya have been training hard and they got two good scores of 66.9% and 67.9% in the elementarys to win the classes overall! As beautiful as Enya is, she is sensitive and can be difficult to ride at times and Rosa has been working very hard on her own riding to help Enya’s way of going. Hard work has paid off for these two 🥇 well done!

09/06/2024

Congratulations to Charlotte and Scarlett today two jumping classes and two wins at Willow Farm

03/06/2024

Successful day at felbridge yesterday for Ben and Merlin, starting with a lovey DC in a very busy discovery placing 4th. Then decided to have a go at the accumulator being much bigger than expected . Super riding from Ben for a nice accurate round just an unfortunate fallen fence early on… but they then went on to clear the joker!🥳

09/05/2024

𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞?

Alison Barten has an amazing ability at getting the best out of riders and their horses. With years of experience competing and running her own competition yard producing a mixture of affiliated Dressage, Showjumping and Eventing horses as well as breeding Alison is well equipt to support you regardless of the level you are at.

▶Are you stuck and not progressing? Alison has a great eye and will quickly see any blocks in your training and will work with you to unlock them.

▶Have you got a young horse you'd like support producing in a kind and sympathetic way? Great she's taken horses up through the levels and always has their welfare at her heart.

▶Do you want to take part in dressage, jumping or crosscountry workshops and camps? Great PM us with your name, email and telephone number and we will let you know date options!

In summary

If you are looking for someone who will do right by your horse and has a lifetime of experience to share with a really lovely teaching style Alison is now offering lessons and training at her yard or yours is running workshops at her yard but equally, if you have a group of friends and want her to come to you and run a workshop that can be arranged! All levels are catered for from youth coaching, competition riders and those of you who simply want to improve and have fun with your horse!

Let's make this year your year 💪😀

Contact us: PM Sparrow Court Farm HQ on here or call Alison directly for a chat: 07801837960