About us
Rangers Riding Ranch CIC is a centre whose objective is to foster confidence, achievement and skills in children and young people with additional needs; veterans and active personnel and emergency service workers with visible and invisible disabilities, through the use of a wide range of equestrian and non-equestrian programmes.
Our Objective
Rangers Riding Ranch CIC is a therapeutic centre whose objective is to foster confidence, achievement and skills in children and young people with additional needs; veterans and active personnel and emergency service workers with visible and invisible disabilities, through the use of a wide range of equestrian and non-equestrian therapeutic programmes.
Dean Brockway - Director
Dean holds a BSc in Geography and a MA in the Geography of Third World Development, which was where I first gained an interest in issues affecting developing countries.
Prior to co-founding Ranger’s Riding Ranch, I worked in several different roles including as a civil servant for HMRC and as a care assistant working with the elderly mentally ill.
I then went on to train as a secondary school teacher specialising in Geography with ICT and spent almost nine years teaching in schools in Essex and Cambridge including spending a number of years as Head of Geography in a school with a higher percentage of pupils on the Special Educational Needs Register.
It was during this time I co-founded an educational charity, Education for Everyone with my late wife and this provided me with a good grounding in how the charitable sector operates.
Katy Wright - Director
Katy is the founder of the prestigious Equestrian Business Awards as well as Equinnect, an organisation which aims to promote and support businesses and professionals and gives peace of mind to horse owners that the professional they use holds the correct credentials. She has an academic background in psychology and working background in Special Education Needs, initially with deaf blind adults before working at a secondary school then qualifying as a primary school teacher with a keen interest in SEN. She continues to teach at a primary school on an army barracks.
Alongside running two equestrian businesses and teaching, she is also a school Governor at a local primary school, chairing the curriculum committee; and is also a member of the Public Advisory Group for the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. The group exists to support RCVS activities by helping it to better understand issues affecting the public, to act as a sounding board on its draft policies, to assist in the development and improvement of its public services, and to help pilot and test its communications.
As a result of Katy’s experiences and areas of expertise particularly in terms of horses, the impact of military life on veteran and current military personnel and their families, SEN and alternative education provisions, she is a keen supporter of Ranger’s Riding Ranch.
Our Horses
Sparkle
My name is Sparkle and I am a little grey pony.
I like to graze alongside my friends and when I am not doing that I love to go out into the school or having a nice brush.
However, when I first came to my new home, I was extremely nervous and scared.
I was badly abused in the past and my owners think I have PTSD.
I have heard stories where horses and humans with PTSD can work together and help each other, and I hope I can do this.
Smirnoff
My name is Smirnoff, and I am a large grey mare with a moustache!
I like to graze in the paddocks and when I am not doing that, I love having a nice brush and relaxing in my stable eating hay.
I have had a very varied life since I arrived here including attending a wedding; visiting Newbury Racecourse to meet some of the children from the on-site nursery dressed up as a unicorn and being taught how to carry a rider for horseback archery.
I am looking forward to seeing what new adventures lie ahead for me.
Polly Pocket
My name is Polly Pocket, and I am a falabella. I may be the smallest member of the herd but what I lack in size I make up for in attitude!
When I am not trying to escape (hence my nickname Houdini) or be cheeky I enjoy a good scratch and a brush and going into the menage and learning new skills.
In 2022 I went to London to visit the Drum Horses of the Household Calvary; they were a little scary at first!
I am looking forward to visiting schools, nurseries, and meeting lots of children.
Ace
My name is Ace, and I am the youngest member of the herd.
I love a good scratch and walking round the yard saying hello to the other horses in their stables.
Because I am so young, I will not be broken in for another couple of years so I do not know exactly what role I will be playing yet.
However, in the meantime anyone is welcome to come and make a fuss of me and give me a nice brush.
Get Involved
If you would like to sponsor one of our horses to helping with the costs of their feed, hay and vets fees please visit our shop.
More details may also be found on the Support Us page.