Our Program
Richmond Therapeutic Riding Association provides therapeutic riding for people, primarily children and youth with disabilities. We offer several sessions of lessons throughout the calendar year.
They are as follows:
- Fall Session – September to December
- Winter Session – January to March
- Integrated Spring Camp – 1 week in March
- Spring Session – March to June
- Summer Session – July
- Integrated Summer Camp(s) – 2 weeks in August
RTRA offers Therapeutic Riding lessons for children and youth with disabilities.
All lessons are semi-private, 30 minutes long and each rider is assigned a weekly time slot for the full session of lessons. Wherever possible, children are paired according to their level of ability and needs.
Regular Session Lessons Times
Monday to Thursday: 10:00 am – 12:45 pm & 3:00 pm – 5:10 pm
Fees for sessions are based on a $55.00 per lesson fee multiplied by the length of the session. (10 weeks = $550.00)
Riders/families must pay a $40.00 annual membership fee to participate in the program and this membership renews each September.
Therapeutic riding is suitable and safe for most, but not all disabilities. Applications for the program must be obtained from RTRA. Once the application including the Physician’s Referral form is completed and returned, it is reviewed by the Program Director. If riding is deemed appropriate for the individual, the applicant’s family will be contacted to arrange an assessment. The assessment appointment helps us determine the rider’s needs such as suitability, class type, physical activity tolerance, mounting technique, volunteer assistance requirements, horse assignment, appropriate equipment, availability and goals. Riders are then placed in any vacancies according to their needs and suitability with the other riders in the lesson. There is no fee for the assessment appointment.
Riders/families are required to assist in fundraising efforts.
Physician’s referral is required as part of the application package/process.
RTRA is a non-profit society and we rely heavily on community support. The cost of providing the lessons for each child for the year is approximately $5,500. Riding fees cover $1,020.00 of this or approximately 18.5%. The remaining 81.5% of the costs are covered through the fundraising efforts of the Association. For this reason, there is an expectation that the families whose children participate in the program will assist the Association in our fundraising efforts. We have several fundraising events during the year for which parents will be asked to help.
Richmond Therapeutic Riding Association brings smiles to all ages.
2024 Calendar
Sessions run in conjunction with the school year, starting in September and can be anywhere from 9-12 weeks in length.