FROM A background steeped in horses, it was almost inevitable that Sarah Houstoun would continue with horses in some form but it was through her family's knowledge and attention to detail that led her into a business of horse and rider safety.

Sarah's mentors were her mother, Molly Sivewright, who together with her father ran The Talland School of Equitation, in Gloucestershire which attracted students from all over the world. At that time there were around 200 horses and more than 100 students at any one time to undertake BHS exams..

As children, Sarah and her sisters, Pammy and Amanda, each had four ponies, they were schooled on before being sold to good families to fund new young and untrained ponies.

"My parents were very forward thinking and brought top international trainers to teach their family and instructors; Gösta Boltenstern – triple gold medalist in dressage from Sweden and Dick Stilwell – trainer for the British event team came frequently to Talland to train us and exchange ideas," explained Sarah.

"Talland was very well respected for being educational, where knowledge was shared by all and safe practices were promoted and adhered to," added Sarah, who won the individual and team titles at the Pony Club Championships in 1971 and then was part of the British dressage team at the European Championships in Aachen.

With a BHSI qualification, Sarah spent time teaching abroad in Australia, Finland and USA before marrying William, and moving north to her husband's family farm where she ran a livery and training yard at their home at Cairnhall, near Kirriemuir.

There she continued to teach and trained several riders and carriage drivers who were part of British teams. More recently Sarah has set up a small riding school at home with a small number of hand picked ponies.

Her regular riding school riders are encouraged to come on a 'buy one and get one lesson free' system once they are more able. "It is a win/win situation – the riders ride better, the ponies are ridden better and we are all happier as a result!" added Sarah.

William worked in Cumbria in the aftermath of foot-and-mouth in 2001 and through this move south Sarah came up with some business ideas of her own.

"It was the Cumbrian Tourist Board who kick started my business SARA4H, Safety And Risk Assessment for Horses, as they commissioned me to work with two businesses under their umbrella.

"I went to Slovakia on a fact finding mission to study the horse industry to see how it fitted into their Slovakian cultural heritage and to compare it to the UK. It was a fascinating trip," said Sarah.

At the same time many riding schools were closing due to forthcoming litigation cases, this concerned Sarah who with her equestrian knowledge and expertise, decided to train in health and safety and undertake an expert witness course accredited by Cardiff University.

"There are so many opportunists about that I wanted to set up a business to advise equestrian businesses what they needed to have and do to fend off ligation cases.

"SARA4H is designed for the equestrian industry and is aimed to help business operators to identify and reduce the risks for everyone on and near their premises."

One of the most common things Sarah saw was that the operator knew the risk on the premises but a visitor doesn't and came up with the idea of health and safety stable risk assessment. "Fewer people growing up around animals – so it's important to reduce the likelihood of accidents and spell out the risks for those coming into our environment.

"Each business should have a health and safety risk assessment system, it's also essential to keep a paper trail of improvements made, which together with suitable signage will reduce exposure to litigation should an accident occur. I'll give a written report on the premises that starts in the office and goes right through the stables, tack room, vehicle movement and business activities etc with recommended action and areas for consideration. It is not at all about expensive and beautiful yards but about providing a safe environment and proving safe practices are in place," added Sarah.

Most work comes from south of the border, through initial contact made from the website. Most recently she was involved in the Aberdeen bypass, which resulted in a livery yard being relocated and increasingly many people are making contact seeking advice as many wind turbines are being erected close to equestrian businesses and bridle paths.

Always thinking Sarah, in conjunction with Jim Green from Hampshire Fire and Rescue recently developed an information box for equestrian and rural businesses which is a solidly built, lockable metal box placed at the entrance to the premises. The red firebox comes supplied with a folder, where the owner details the premises, the layout, number of animals, emergency contact details and any possible danger areas, for example gas tanks in a shed, duck pond, slurry tank, low electricity wires etc.

"Rural businesses can be isolated with nobody about so firefighters need to get as much information as possible as soon as they arrive at an incident," points outs Sarah.

After her first risk assement highlighted the lack of signage for an emergency, Sarah tried to find a source of signs but struggling to find a British company she decided to set up Rural Safety Signs; they now supply safety and warning signage for around the yard, including Horsewatch Scotland signs and a kit for use during road safety examinations, such as traffic lights, give way and men at work signs.

Discounts are available to BHS and Pony Club approved businesses for any work done through SARA4H, and for an expert report.

n See also www.sara4h.co.uk