Ten year old Oumar (not his real name) started visiting us weekly with his school during the spring term. He is autistic and non-verbal, so interactions are challenging and he retreats further into himself in unfamiliar situations.

The first week he refused point blank to put a hat on. His behaviour was unpredictable, and we had to be extra careful to keep him and our lovely patient RDA pony safe. Over 8 weeks there were occasional tiny signs of progress but perhaps we imagined them because we wanted so badly to see them.

Half term meant a break from the school’s weekly visits to Petersham, but the next week, Oumar was back. This time he headed straight to the selection of hats, put one on without being asked, then climbed onto the horse.

And at that point he turned to Natalie and smiled, for the first time.

This may sound like a small thing, but for Oumar it’s a breakthrough. It marks the moment when he chose to start connecting with us.

We’ll continue to take it steadily, with Oumar setting the pace, but we think that the magic of horses is just starting to unlock a child who hasn’t been letting anyone close.

What potential will he and we find in our journey together over the coming weeks?

We regularly welcome participants with conditions such as autism and Asperger’s syndrome. These may be invisible, but they can make regular interaction almost impossible. Horses make great therapists by being both an excellent distraction and totally non-judgemental.