Orion College is ready to get back in the saddle with the Earth Centre

Orion College in Randpark Ridge is eager to get back to providing a therapeutic horse-riding experience for its learners. The programme, held at the Earth Centre, offers therapeutic riding sessions tailored to meet the needs of children with disabilities.

The primary school principal, Barbara Robinson, shed light on the school’s collaboration with the Earth Centre. “We have a relationship with the Earth Centre; they are part of SARDA which is the South African Riding for the Disabled Association.”

Robinson explained how Orion College started riding with the centre. “I drove past there regularly on my way back from work years ago, and one day I decided to pop in and have a chat with them because I found out that they worked with schools—schools with children with disabilities. And that’s how we started working with them.”

Robinson shared details about the frequency of the visits. “We take our foundation phase learners to go and ride with them once every three weeks or once a month depending on how many learners we’ve got.” Looking ahead, she expressed optimism about continuing the programme throughout the year. “We haven’t yet started for this year, but we are hoping to start soon and continue for the whole year. We usually take eight learners down at a time. Four will ride while the others wait, and then they switch over. They get about half an hour to ride on their horse with an instructor and a volunteer.”

Highlighting the therapeutic focus of horse riding, Robinson clarified that the learners were not just going to ride a horse, but that there are additional health benefits. “It is hippotherapy or equine therapy. They also do various exercises. A lot of it is to develop the core. It’s also about learning to hold your body up in a specific way.”

Adrian van Biljon, an instructor at the Earth Centre, emphasized the therapeutic advantages of horse riding for children with intellectual and physical disabilities. “The horses are so good for therapy because of the three-dimensional walk. As abled people, we do that naturally. A kid that has a physical disability that affects their hips does not get that normal movement, but if we put them on a horse, we connect with the hips directly giving them that free movement and moving their hip muscles that do not usually move.” van Biljon explained. “Another thing that aids in therapy is the horse itself – being close to the horse. That gets the blood flowing and gets their neuropathways to open up so now they can get more information in. Then the other aspect is having fun.”

According to Robinson, horse riding is the highlight of the week for many learners, providing them with a sense of joy, accomplishment, and connection with nature. “The learners love their outings to the Earth Centre, and the opportunity to be with the horses. We have seen many benefits including general overall confidence, improved balance and coordination, they are learning to follow instructions better and there are many other benefits.”

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