Skip to content

Power of Polo and Alabaré Partner on Residential Experience

Power of Polo’s final residential experience of the year took place at The Royal County of Berkshire Polo Club in October.

In partnership with Cool Hooves Polo and generously supported by the Polo for Heroes organisation, eight participants completed the four-day course with residents from Alabaré.

The five military veterans and three young people, most of whom had never ridden before, underwent an intense four days of training and teamwork which culminated in a mini-tournament. In the words of Cool Hooves Polo’s head coach Miles Underwood, they “packed four months into four days!”

The week incorporated riding and polo basics, including ride-offs and key shots, work on the wooden horse, horse care and a veterinary talk, practice chukkas, and much more. A highlight was a trip to the Guards Polo Club and a tour of the Royal Box. Even the regular downpours didn’t dim spirits, and the participants all enjoyed bonding with their ponies and pushing themselves to their own personal limits.

Jay, who was awarded the Best Horsemanship prize on the final day of prizegiving, put into words what the course meant to him. “For me, personally, this has been a journey because I don’t have much resilience. I don’t get out and talk to people and I wouldn’t be here without the teams and charities who’ve supported me. I’ve learnt patience, resilience, horsemanship…it’s been incredible.”

Grace won the Most Improved Rider award and recognised the impact being around horses has had on her own outlook. “I’ve built a lot of self-confidence this week, doing things myself and pushing myself out of my comfort zone, rather than just sticking where I’m comfortable. It’s been really good for my anxiety and my mental health in general, and I’ve loved making a connection with my horse!”[1]

Power of Polo is a unique national charity which aims to positively impact the lives of people facing social, economic or health challenges, utilising the sport of polo. It enables organisations such as The RCBPC to give something back to the wider community through their sport, providing the infrastructure needed to build programmes that support people from a range of backgrounds to change their lines – and their lives.

Power of Polo CEO Naomi Howgate was delighted with the success of the course. “This has been a brilliant week for all involved and we couldn’t be prouder of our Alabaré participants, who’ve achieved so much in just a few days. So many people are involved in a week like this, but I’d especially like to thank Cool Hooves Polo, the Royal County of Berkshire Polo Club and Clare Dingwall from Polo for Heroes, who all enabled this week to happen. This is the final residential of 2024, but we have exciting things in the pipeline and we are looking forward to further growth, through partnerships with new charity partners, new polo organisations and new donors, which will help us to reach many more participants in 2025.”

Thank you to funders Energise Me for their support

Quick contact

If you need some help or have any questions please get in touch. We will get back to you within 48 hours for any general enquiries. If you need emergency help click here

"*" indicates required fields


We will only contact you about this enquiry, and will not add you to any marketing lists etc.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.