We continue to follow government advice and are working closely with our member bodies to implement any restrictions required, including any requirements for the staff within our organisations. 

Following yesterday’s Government Cobra committee meeting, the Prime Minister announced the status of the pandemic had changed from the ‘containment’ phase to a ‘delay’ phase. 

We advise everyone to continue to follow Government advice because this is a public health issue. Public Health England is the lead organisation and we urge our stakeholders to closely follow their guidance.

The latest guidance is that anyone with flu-like symptoms should self-isolate for at least seven days, even if those symptoms are mild. If symptoms remain mild, people do not need to call 111. Further details can be found here.

At this time, over England, Wales and Northern Ireland, there are no plans are in place to suspend major public events or close schools. Therefore, there are no restrictions on equestrian sport or activity. 

In Scotland, from Monday 16 March, all large gatherings above 500 people with the potential to impact the emergency services should be cancelled to prioritise the Covid-19 (coronavirus) outbreak, but normal, small scale activity can continue.

Some general tips to remember if you’re taking part in general or equestrian activity:
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• Wash your hands more often than usual. Wash for at least 20 seconds using soap and hot water. Use hand sanitiser if that’s all you have access to
• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue, or with your sleeve if you don't have a tissue, and throw the tissue away immediately. Immediately wash your hands or use a hand sanitising gel
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using your regular cleaning products
• Be prepared to self-isolate – plan how it will impact on your day-to-day requirements
• Plan ahead for your situation, which might include alternative care for your horse if you need to self-isolate
• Use health services wisely
• Stay up-to-date with trusted sources of information

Important links for information:
UK Government and Public Health England advice
Government response to the outbreak
Current travel advice
Current advice for employers and businesses
Scotland
Coronavirus in Scotland
Advice from Health Protection Scotland
Wales
Coronavirus in Wales
Statement from the Welsh Government
Northern Ireland 
Statement from Northern Ireland Department of Health
 
The British Horse Society has also published some useful advice for their Centres, but the recommendations are appropriate for any yard.

ERA/Rider Working Group IT Meeting update from 2/3/20 with Jude Matthews. 
Tara Williams has been diligently collating all website & EARS feedback so as to present this back to BE and to discuss routes forward.

The key areas discussed were:
- Card blocking - where members have had their cards declined and subsequently blocked due to multiple payments in quick succession
- Live Scoring & the provision of results 
- VAT receipts and their layouts
- General layout of the website and the pitfalls of the current customer journey. We have made a number of suggestions as to how we would like to see this improved.
- Search functionality for future entries
- Multiple emails being received, for example those receiving 4 emails with times
- Streamlining of the customer journey in the e-commerce section of the platform

We are encouraged to see that a number of these points are already being addressed, for example the search functionality for future entries, but acknowledge there are still further developments required. 

We are keen to collate further feedback to submit to the board, on behalf of the rider membership, ahead of Monday’s board meeting. Please submit these via the Feedback form on the www.eventingriders.comwebsite.
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In separate lines of communication, ERA have also been trying to address communication to the membership and we are working closely with organisers to effect good lines of communication between the riders body and the events.

British Eventing is privileged to launch details of the Derek Gooden Fund in memory of one of the sports most dedicated and experienced volunteers. 

The new fund will support current BE fence judges with their travel to Olympic or World Equestrian Games hosted outside of Europe. 

Following his death in 2016, British Eventing was honoured to recently learn that BE Volunteer and Professional Adviser, Derek Gooden, generously dedicated a sum of his estate to British Eventing to set up a fund to assist fence judges with their overseas travel to events. 

Derek, a recipient of the BE Award, was a vital part of the sport for many years and best known for his expertise as a Health and Safety officer and was an adviser in Health and Safety for many events, as well as a Cross Country Steward and Fence Judge. 

BE CEO Jude Matthews commented; “All of us at British Eventing were very touched by the news and cannot think of a better way to honour Derek’s memory than through this fabulous Fund. Our sport could not run without the tireless dedication of volunteers, and to be able to help them travel to these incredible overseas events will provide some of our fence judges, who otherwise may not have been able to attend, with some fantastic opportunities and experiences. 

“Volunteers who have applied for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games will soon find out if they have been successful in securing a place as a Olympic volunteer, so we hope that through these bursaries we can support some of our volunteers with their travel to Tokyo this year.”
APPLY HERE

About the Derek Gooden Fund

• The Derek Gooden Fund will assist Fence Judges with a travel bursary for Olympic and World Games, where these are held outside of Europe. 
• Fence Judges will be able to apply for a travel bursary once they have been accepted by the organising committee of the Games as a volunteer. 
• Sue Clayton, Derek Gooden’s Will Executor, will be part of the awarding group along with representative of British Eventing.
• A maximum of £1000 will be offered in any one award year. 
• Applications will be submitted to British Eventing.

​Please email volunteer@britisheventing.com with any questions or queries about the Fund.
APPLY HERE

Saracen Horse Feeds are delighted to announce the launch of a brand new eventing series for the 2020 season.  The Saracen Horse Feeds One2One Eventing Series in association with BEDE Events, is solely aimed at grass roots riders competing one horse at BE90.

BEDE Events will be running the BE90 qualifying sections at Firle Place, Shelford 1, BCA & Aske Horse Trials and will be open to single horse riders with a final being held at Shelford (2) Horse Trials.  

The highly competitive BE90 sections are a firm favourite with amateur and professional riders alike, this new series offers single horse riders the opportunity to compete on a level playing field against like minded competitors.  

Riders completing a qualifier will be invited to compete at the championships which will be held at Shelford (2) Horse Trials on 29th & 30th August. 
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As a leading manufacturer of horse feed, Saracen Horse Feeds are dedicated to delivering high quality, research led rations to support the nutritional needs of the modern equine athlete. The Saracen Horse Feeds range is designed to support horses at all stages of life, development and activity and supported with a free of charge nutrition advice service to support riders when choosing feed. 

Saracen, Sales and Marketing Director Michael Bacon “We are very excited to launch this new series, it’s a great opportunity for riders competing with one horse to go head to head and aim for a high profile championship. Stuart and the team at BEDE always go the extra mile at events to support riders, with no exception this new series is set to be an excellent addition to their calendar”.   

Stuart Buntine, of BEDE Events, was delighted when announcing this series “we are committed to offering riders at all levels the chance to compete in this exciting series. The One 2 One series will offer a great focus for our grass roots riders in the sport” 

BEDE Events & Saracen Horse Feeds are excited to be launching this series which will offer riders an aim for their summer campaigns and with the championships running over the Bank Holiday weekend – what better way to finish off the summer! 

For more information please contact: Georgie Dickinson – georgie@bedeltd.co.uk – 01949 829061 ext 3 

The British Equestrian Federation (BEF) is in constant contact with key partners such as UK Sport, the British Olympic Association, the Sport and Recreation Alliance, and the FEI to monitor the situation both in Britain and globally around the current Coronavirus outbreak.

We urge all stakeholders to follow Government advice and information, which is regularly
updated on the GOV.uk website. For those with travel concerns, there is specific advice available here. The Government published their action plan on 3 March, which outlines the measures in force to contain the spread of the virus.
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There is presently no rationale to close or cancel equestrian events, but this may change as the situation evolves. We would strongly recommend everyone in the equestrian community to follow the NHS guidance on how to avoid catching or spreading the virus to help in the containment process.

British Eventing is excited to announce the full details of a new team competition for adult riders at BE80(T) and BE90 Open level for the 2020 season. Teams will have the opportunity to compete in any of the ten Team Challenge Qualifiers to win a place at the Team Challenge Championship at Weston Park (2) this October sponsored by Rowen Barbary.  

With the Rider Working Groups, in conjunction with ERA of GB, the 2020 Team Challenge launches with some exciting changes, including the introduction of Team Challenge Qualifiers and self-selecting teams. Teams of up to four can compete in Team Challenge Qualifiers, taking place between June and August this year, and the winning team at each Qualifier takes a spot at the Team Challenge Championship.

Olivia Szajna, Head of Marketing, Communications and Commercial commented; “Last year’s Regional Team competition, supported by Rowen Barbary, was brilliant and the riders that took part thoroughly enjoyed the competition at Weston Park. The overwhelming feedback last year from our eventing community was that they would love the opportunity to take part with their friends in self-selected teams, and that the eligibility criteria should be relaxed. We have taken this feedback on board with the aim of giving more members the chance to experience this new team competition opportunity.
 
“From the feedback the most significant changes made have been to introduce BE80(T) level competition, expand the BE90 class to BE90 Open, remove the selection process and allow riders to form their own teams and introduce Qualifiers. Over the past few months we have worked with the Sport Team, Rider Working Groups, our Regional Coordinators and Event Organisers to create the new format, rules and eligibility, taking feedback along the way to make amends that best suit the needs of our members. 

“Our sport is all about community, so we are really excited about bringing this opportunity to our members. We hope that this will not only give riders at BE80(T) and BE90 Open level a real aim for the season and the opportunity to compete with their friends, but encourage new people into the sport with a fun, friendly and supportive competition. 

“We hope that the new competition will be well supported, and we are thankful to our Event Organisers for hosting the Qualifiers and the Championship. As with anything new, this pilot year will be a learning curve and we will continue to take feedback in order to evolve the competition going forwards, including looking at the introduction of BE100 sections.”

How to Take Part

• View the rules and eligibility criteria HERE.
• Get your friends, family or yard buddies together, appoint a team manager and think of a team name! (Teams must be made up of at least three and a maximum of four combinations).
• View the Team Challenge Qualifiers and the dates for when online team applications open.
• Once you have decided which qualifier(s) your team want to compete at submit your team via the application form. Applications will be based on a first come first served basis – so make sure you apply early. You can apply to compete in as many qualifiers as you wish.
• Get training – keep an eye on the BE Training Courses page for specific Team Challenge training in the run up to the Qualifiers. 
• Once applications are closed a British Eventing Regional Training and Education Administrator will notify your team manager whether your team has got a place in the Qualifier or not.
• If your team has been accepted you can go ahead and make your entries to the Qualifier. 
• Go and have fun!

View the 2020 Team Challenge Rules and Eligibility
To help our members connect with other riders looking to become part of a team, answer any questions and generally get excited about the Team Challenge, join the official Team Challenge Facebook Group HERE.

If you have any questions please contact sport@britisheventing.com.