We’re still getting back into the swing of things after a very busy month of events and fundraising! The BE Support Trust team went from Scone Palace Horse Trials straight to Burghley – albeit not using pedal power like our intrepid team of charity cyclists used to get there – then on to Cornbury House before finally rounding things off at Blenheim Palace. But amid all the travelling, fundraising and snatching a few minutes here and there to see some of the eventing, it hasn’t escaped our attention that there’s another very important milestone in the calendar this September. That’s right, the BE Support Trust turns five this month!
The British Eventing Support Trust was launched at the Chedington Equestrian Bicton Park 5* Horse Trials in September 2021 with the aim of making sure that no British Eventing competing member has to struggle on alone. The idea itself had begun to take shape during the Covid-19 pandemic, at a time when owners, riders, grooms and fans were left wondering when their sport would return after international competitions, grassroots events and everything in between were cancelled. The Tokyo Olympics were postponed and, of course, there was no such thing as being ‘furloughed’ for the people who still had horses to feed, exercise and care for every day.
It was a testing time for everyone involved in the sport, but it also got a group of people thinking about what help was available to riders when things went wrong. Eventing has a remarkable community and there has always been a strong sense of looking after our own, with fellow riders, owners, friends and others in the sport often rallying around someone who is having a difficult time.
That can be a godsend, but what about riders who don’t have a big network of people around them? What happens when an accident means someone suddenly can’t ride, work or run their yard as they normally would? And what about riders struggling with their mental health who might be worried about speaking out or unsure where to turn?
It became clear that something more structured was needed: somewhere riders could go for confidential, practical and financial help during difficult times. That was at the heart of the BE Support Trust’s mission when it launched five years ago, and it remains at the heart of what we do today.
Here for riders competing at every level
One of the founding principles of the BE Support Trust is that we are here for riders at every level of British Eventing. Someone competing at BE90 who has an accident is just as eligible to apply for help as a rider competing at five-star level.
We help riders through difficult times resulting from an equestrian accident or mental health issues, and the accident doesn’t need to have happened while competing. We know that serious injuries can happen anywhere around horses, whether someone is schooling at home, hacking, working with horses on the yard or competing at an event.
Riders can apply following an accident that has happened within the previous 12 months, too. That matters because the consequences of an injury don’t always become clear immediately. Recovery can take longer than expected, circumstances can change and problems can emerge weeks or months down the line.
Every case that comes to the Trust is considered on an individual basis, so what we provide can be shaped around what that particular person needs. No two accidents, recoveries or personal circumstances are quite the same, and that bespoke approach has been a key part of the Trust since the beginning.
Five years of the BE Support Trust
It has certainly been a busy five years for our staff, trustees, volunteers and supporters, with some very special milestones along the way.
In August 2023, less than two years after the BE Support Trust was launched, we were proud and delighted to announce that HRH The Princess Royal had become our President. As a former European eventing champion and a legendary figure within the sport, Her Royal Highness understands the eventing world extremely well, and her appointment was a very special moment for everyone involved with the charity. It also helped us raise awareness of the Trust and the help available to riders across eventing and the wider equestrian community.
Later in 2023, we were able to introduce something that sits right at the core of our mission: our mental health helpline in association with Sporting Chance. The helpline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is completely confidential, giving riders somewhere to turn when they are struggling and a trained ear at the end of the phone when they need it.
2022 saw the first BE Support Trust Winter Ball take place at The Savoy in London in late November. It proved to be a fantastic evening, and we did it all over again in 2023, 2024 and 2025, bringing together people from across eventing and the wider equestrian world to raise much-needed funds. Across those four events alone, more than £584,000 has been raised to help us continue our work with riders.
Of course, fundraising comes in many different forms, and we’ve had people climb Mont Blanc, run the length of Hadrian’s Wall, run marathons and even dunk themselves in cold water once a day for a month to raise money for us! We’ve also been grateful for the support of top riders who host course walks and appear at events for us, as they are such a vital part of getting the word out there. It seems that, even five years on, the enthusiasm our supporters have to help us raise funds isn’t waning. The past few weeks have been a very good example of that!
Just some of our recent fundraisers!
This September, Andrew Ransford, Henry Kinchin, Thomas March and Alastair Wilson climbed onto their bikes at Scone Palace Horse Trials and set off for Burghley, covering hundreds of miles over four days in aid of the BE Support Trust and Riders Minds. While most of us made the journey south using rather more conventional forms of transport, they pedalled all the way and arrived at Burghley in time for the start of the event.
Burghley itself brought another memorable fundraiser with our horseshoe sculpture raffle. Created by sculptor Oliver Mitchell, the extraordinary piece was made using 65 horseshoes worn by some very familiar eventing names, including London 52, JL Dublin and Lordships Graffalo. Tickets were sold throughout the build-up to the event before the winning ticket was drawn at Burghley by our President, HRH The Princess Royal.
Those are some of the more memorable moments that stand out when we look back, but the Trust’s story has really been built on hundreds of individual acts of generosity. So many people have taken on challenges, organised fundraisers, attended events, bought raffle tickets, made donations and given their time to help us keep doing what we do.
The challenge is still growing
Today, we’re providing vital help to event riders at every level of the sport, but more awareness of our work means that demand continues to grow. We are seeing more riders come to us year on year and are on track to help more people than ever before. That inevitably means we need to raise more money to make sure we can continue saying yes when someone comes to us in need. What one rider requires might look very different to another, which is why our ability to consider each case individually and find the right way forward is so valuable.
Reaching our fifth anniversary feels like a good opportunity to celebrate how far the Trust has come, but also to say a huge thank you. To our staff, trustees and volunteers, to British Eventing and the wider eventing community, and to every single person who has donated, fundraised, attended an event, bought a raffle ticket or helped us in countless other ways over the past five years, we really couldn’t do it without you.
Most importantly, thank you to the riders who have put their trust in us and allowed us to be there during some very difficult periods in their lives. You can read a selection of our case studies here if you’d like to learn more about our work.
When the BE Support Trust was launched in September 2021, the aim was to make sure that event riders had somewhere to turn when they needed help. Five years later, that remains our focus, and with the continued backing of this brilliant community, we hope to be here for riders for many years to come. Thank you to every single one of you who has helped us so far – we’re just getting started!