Tranquil Park Stables Horse Management & Riding Centre

I volunteered here a couple of months ago, and I've finally found the time to write a review.



First, the owner-coach is very knowledgeable about horses and riding, and they are dedicated to teaching their students. However, my experience was less positive due to several issues.



Before I started, I asked about the schedule and specific arrival times, but I never received clear answers and instead was told to arrive whenever I wanted. Not knowing much other than that the first lesson was around 9:30 a.m., I arrived early to help get the horses and everything else ready. Unfortunately, this seemed to annoy the coach. After volunteering for four hours, I had to leave for an appointment, which felt unacceptable and there were attempts to guilt me into staying instead of going to the important appointment



I felt like I was thrown into the deep end. I wasn’t given sufficient explanations or the promised training, and I was expected to know the all the horses, the layout, and any specific procedures immediately.



During my time volunteering, I often found myself working later (until 7:30 p.m.) than everyone else, who left after just one or two hours. For example, one girl arrived at 3 p.m. and left at 5 p.m. after only assisting with one lesson. The owner is definitely overwhelmed and unable to manage everything herself, mentioning her physical difficulties on more than one occasion—something I feel should not have been any of my business as I was still a stranger.



There were several instances where I struggled with tasks like tacking up horses. Despite repeatedly stating that I wasn’t familiar with the process and needed guidance, one of the other volunteers rudely told me to go pick up the yards instead of showing me how to do it correctly.



Regarding the coach: she often smoked during lessons in the outdoor arena, was on the phone during lessons, called late at night for unnecessary casual conversations that could have occurred when I was present, and on one occasion made an insulting comment about my horse.



If I wasn’t present at a time that suited her, she would message or call, disregarding my schedule.



Two things that were a major red flag for me were that she never once asked for a working with children's check from any of the volunteers who are adults, considering the majority of the lessons are with vulnerable children. The other was that she openly stated to everyone that with one of the horses, she has to get the volunteers or herself to whip because "he won't move without it." However, when lunging him, he would move without it, and she wasn't happy with me during a lesson when I would only tap him instead of whipping him hard and excessively, as I wasn't comfortable with whipping him the way she wanted me too.



Despite my attempts to set boundaries, she tried to pressure me into helping with the school holiday program, despite my other commitments. There was also an incident where she left the premises for three hours during a scheduled lesson, leaving me—an inexperienced volunteer—to manage the situation. I could only assist the family with grooming and tacking up the horse, and when they didn’t know what to do next, they left, leaving me alone for another 30 minutes until another volunteer arrived.



Overall, I came here to learn more about the riding aspect of horse ownership. However, my experience was hindered by a lack of communication, support, and respect for volunteers’ time and abilities from both the owner and other volunteers.

I volunteered here a couple of months ago, and I've finally found the time to write a review.



First, the owner-coach are very knowledgeable about horses and riding, and they are dedicated to teaching their students. However, my experience was less positive due to several issues.



Before I started, I asked about the schedule and specific arrival times, but I never received clear answers and instead was told to arrive whenever I wanted. Not knowing much other than that the first lesson was around 9:30 a.m., I arrived early to help get the horses and everything else ready. Unfortunately, this seemed to annoy the coach. After volunteering for four hours, I had to leave for an appointment, which felt unacceptable and there were attempts to guilt me into staying instead of going to the important appointment



I felt like I was thrown into the deep end. I wasn’t given sufficient explanations or the promised training, and I was expected to know the all the horses, the layout, and any specific procedures immediately.



During my time volunteering, I often found myself working later (until 7:30 p.m.) than everyone else, who left after just one or two hours. For example, one girl arrived at 3 p.m. and left at 5 p.m. after only assisting with one lesson. The owner is definitely overwhelmed and unable to manage everything herself, mentioning her physical difficulties on more than one occasion—something I feel should not have been any of my business as I was still a stranger.



There were several instances where I struggled with tasks like tacking up horses. Despite repeatedly stating that I wasn’t familiar with the process and needed guidance, one of the other volunteers rudely told me to go pick up the yards instead of showing me how to do it correctly.



Regarding the coach: she often smoked during lessons in the outdoor arena, was on the phone during lessons, called late at night for unnecessary casual conversations that could have occurred when I was present, and on one occasion made an insulting comment about my horse.



If I wasn’t present at a time that suited her, she would message or call, disregarding my schedule.



Two things that were a major red flag for me were that she never once asked for a working with children's check from any of the volunteers who are adults, considering the majority of the lessons are with vulnerable children. The other was that she openly stated to everyone that with one of the horses, she has to get the volunteers or herself to whip because "he won't move without it." However, when lunging him, he would move without it, and she wasn't happy with me during a lesson when I would only tap him instead of whipping him hard and excessively, as I wasn't comfortable with whipping him the way she wanted me too.



Despite my attempts to set boundaries, she tried to pressure me into helping with the school holiday program, despite my other commitments. There was also an incident where she left the premises for three hours during a scheduled lesson, leaving me—an inexperienced volunteer—to manage the situation. I could only assist the family with grooming and tacking up the horse, and when they didn’t know what to do next, they left, leaving me alone for another 30 minutes until another volunteer arrived.



Overall, I came here to learn more about the riding aspect of horse ownership. However, my experience was hindered by a lack of communication, support, and respect for volunteers’ time and abilities from both the owner and other volunteers.