27th March 2025

Here are some bullet points from the recent Council meeting:

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Safeguarding - Safe to Play is a campaign to educate those in a position of trust on safeguarding standards and explains how to meet their duty of care. Comprehensive information available for parents or guardians, children and young people, on what signs to look out for and who to speak to if they have a concern.  All our Member Bodies are asked to have a Safeguarding Policy in place and visible on each website together with this link:

British Equestrian - Safe to Play  

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Veterinary Advice - Veterinary Advisor, Dr Jane Nixon MRCVS gave a report from the Equine Infectious Diseases Action Group (EIDAG) - There has been several small outbreaks of Foot and Mouth disease in Germany and Hungary lately and in recent days a further reporting from the Hungarian/Slovenian area.  Although horses/ponies/equids are not directly affected by F&M disease, this has stopped the movement of animals in those area as it can be carried through other means e.g. lorry tyres driving through the regions.

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Worshipful Company of Saddlers - Exciting news from the Worshipful Company of Saddlers who are developing a Best Fitting Tack Awards programme for Showing classes. This is to encourage awareness for all in Showing to fit tack to good standards.  It is anticipated this will initially be to award Bridle (and Bit) fitting and will be judged by suitably qualified specialists.

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Dope-Testing - From the recent Member Body Survey, dope-testing was mentioned as a topic of interest by a number of Societies.  To decide on next steps all Member Bodies are asked to drop an email info@theshowingcouncil.co.uk         

with the following details:  How many dope tests did your Society carry out in 2025 and how many do you plan to carry out in 2026.

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Unified Rules - Another firm important topic illustrated from the Survey.  There will be a working group meeting in mid-April to forward plan the topics to be covered so they can be formulated for inclusion in 2026 Rule Books.