The British Equestrian Trade Association’s second Summer of Safety is in full swing. With lots of fabulous lives, content, competitions and information, I took the chance to catch up with Claire Williams, Executive Director of BETA, to chat about the campaign in its second year.

Putting equestrian safety in focus with Claire Williams from BETA

BETA’s Summer of Safety started in 2021 to help support all aspects of safety around horses. This extends beyond riding hats and body protectors and covers a lot more besides.

One of the big things we talk about on this podcast – and one of the focuses of the 2022 Summer of Safety- is the Accident & Equipment Reporting Form. This brilliant form launched late last year and has been catching incredible data for the equestrian trade ever since. By reporting injuries and accidents, we as equestrians have the chance to help influence safety decisions and design of the future, just by sharing what happens to us when we’re with our horses!

Accident & Equipment Reporting Form- five facts

• This form was developed to capture information from all riders, regardless of the brand they wear.
• It’s been created to get as much information as possible connected to injuries and accidents and the role that safety equipment plays in the accidents.
• The data that’s gathered will help to shape safety equipment and standards of the future.
• The form is also going to be introduced to Europe. It’s going to be translated into other languages and further help support the trade and the development of equipment.
• It’s not just about falling off, many accidents happen on the ground, and this data is also really important to feed into the system.

In addition to the above, we chat about safety standards for air jackets, the previous lack of data around injuries and accidents in equestrian sport as a whole, the National Equestrian Survey, hat standards, how hats work- and a very very lucky showjumper!

Find out more about BETA’s passion for safety, the form, and so much more on this episode of the podcast.

To find out more about the British Equestrian Trade Association, have a look at the website, or follow on Instagram and Facebook.