Horse Welfare Board: Gallops Maintenance courses
As part of British racing’s commitment to deliver the best standards of care for racehorses, the Horse Welfare Board (HWB) is pleased to offer a brand-new training course designed to enhance yard staff’s knowledge of gallops and ground maintenance at training facilities.
The one-day in-person course is aimed at yard staff responsible for gallop maintenance, either in full, part or hybrid roles, or yard-based staff interested in learning more about ground management in the sport. The groups will be limited to 15. Sessions in 2025 will be provided entirely free of charge with generous funding by the Racing Foundation.
This provision follows feedback from the HWB’s Trainers Gallops Survey which has been running in 2025, in which trainers requested more educational opportunities and sharing of best practice with regards to training surfaces and maintenance procedures, to ensure the best possible safety of horses in training environments.
Developed in partnership with STRI (Sports Turf Research Institute) and Jockey Club Estates, this practical training reflects core findings from STRI’s in-depth analysis of racing surfaces, as part of the wider Horse Welfare Board Ground and Going project.
Led by STRI’s Sarah Hosmer and Will Riggall of Jockey Club Estates, the course will blend small classroom-based sessions on surface composition and maintenance procedures with practical sessions focusing on equipment and surface assessments.
The course will take place as follows:
Lambourn – 1st October 2025, 11am-3pm
Malton – 7th October 2025, 11am-3pm
Kinross, Perthshire – 8th October 2025, 11am-3pm
If you would like to put forward member(s) of your team fill out the following short form HERE.
If you have any queries, please contact Pip Kirkby at pkirkby@racehorsewelfare.co.uk, or 07796996081.