GUIDELINES FOR PARENTS

General Communications.

Communications with members’ parents will published on our website, and there will be follow ups by email or text as well as through our private Facebook page. If you are on Facebook, and wish to be accepted into the private Newcastle Lyons Facebook group, please message Sinead Gleeson through Facebook and you can be added directly to the group.

As part of the Irish Pony club, all members are subject to the Irish Pony Club code of conduct.

Pony Club Rallies

Newcastle Lyons run rallies for our members only. We aim to have pony club rallies at least once a month and it can get very busy on the rally front when approaching events/competitions. Rallies are group lessons held at various venues throughout the year. Rallies can be general or cover a particular aspect of horse riding, e.g. X country riding to Mounted Games or preparing for a Pony Club Test. We try to group the lessons by age/ability as much as we can.

Notice of these rallies will be sent by email and you will be required to express your interest through our ItsPlainSailing page (www.itsplainsailing.com/club/ncl). Payment may be online or at the rallies and we strive to keep this around €20-€30, covering the cost of venue and instructor hire.

Rallies are great learning experiences and combine fun and social activity for the members. To get the most from Pony Club, attendance at rallies is a must.

When a child comes to a rally, their parent or appointed guardian on the day must be present. We may need assistance in running the rallies, e.g. adjusting fence heights or helping to tack up etc.

Rallies are social events as well and we like to gather have that cup of tea and refreshments for the children, so please bring a drink/snack for your child. The chat after the achievements of the day help make the day special.

General Rally Rules & Turnout

Please arrive in plenty time for the rally
Do not mount until the instructor has checked your tack & given you permission to mount.
Please ensure unmounted siblings, friends or relatives are properly supervised.
Ponies must be clean and groomed with correctly fitting clean tack. No need to plait but pony’s mane should be neat.
Riders must wear plain jodhpurs (white, beige, navy or black), approved footwear & riding hat (see standard below), gloves and an approved back protector.
Long hair must be tied back neatly, preferably in a hairnet. No earrings/jewelry allowed.
Collared shirt and pony club tie and sweatshirt finish the standard attire.
For X country rallies, an approved skull cap must be worn (i.e. no hard peak riding hats).
At Pony Club competitions, there will always be a tack inspection of child and pony.

There are tack inspection sheets for all the disciplines and you will find them here: under Tack Sheets.

The rules are strictly adhered to so its good to be aware of them from early on.

Riding Hat Standards for Irish Pony Club

As part of the Irish Pony club, all members Hats will be checked according to the disciplines being performed.