The Park Lane Stables team is settling in well at its new temporary home in Petersham and is now ready for visitors again. Nub News visited for a tour and to catch up with Owner Natalie O'Rourke...

Since the charity moved out of its Teddington home a few weeks ago staff and volunteers have been busy organising everything over at the new site.

They can now be found at Manor Farm Stables next to Ham Polo Club – a short walk from the Hammerton's Ferry drop off.

The charity is staying here on a temporary basis while searching for a permanent home and still hopes to return to Park Lane in Teddington, where it had been for 13 years.

Owner Natalie O'Rourke is keen to thank everyone who helped with the move on June 1 and to encourage people to drop by and visit the horses like they did in Teddington.

"The horses are for everyone," she said. "People are welcome to come and visit.

"We want to be part of the community here like we were in Teddington.

"I don't want people to think it is a private place."

Natalie said the horses have been settling in well as all the people around them have remained, despite the change in location.

With 35 stables, the new site is considerably larger than Park Lane which has 10 stables, and Natalie thinks the horses might just think they are on holiday.

The volunteers and participants have also been settling in well. Natalie brought the old sign across from Teddington which she says is a great help for those who have been nervous about the change.

Daniel, one of the volunteers who was with Park Lane Stables in Teddington, now feels totally at home at the new site.

"I love it here!" he said.

"I just get the 65 bus (from Teddington). It's really nice here."

Natalie says she is grateful to the volunteers and team that helped them move over to Richmond from Teddington, which took them from 6.30am until 7pm.

"All the volunteers and the team worked so well together.

"I was useless – I just kept crying! It was the hardest day of the year.

"Everybody really pulled together.

"The volunteers have been the scaffolding that has held us all up."

Paul Bursche, who has been helping the charity with communications since the fundraising campaign, added: "If the England football team had the sort of comradery that we saw that day, we would win!"

Natalie said when she got the call from Pete Mccormack offering her use of his stables just down the road she didn't believe him.

"He called me and said 'I have 35 stables nearby if you need them'.

"I thought it was a joke – I thought, 'there are no stables around here like that'!" she said.

Luckily for the charity, the new landlord has a personal connection to the amazing work they do and didn't hesitate to help.

"He's got a sister with a learning disability and so he connected with us so well," said Natalie.

"He really gets it and he understands the need for continuity because of his sister.

"He has been very, very kind to us and made us all so welcome."

Natalie and her team of 100 staff and volunteers are currently running most activities for people with disabilities and hope to be able to get all activities back soon.

She said: "At the moment we are doing what we can under covid guidelines - we are in a bit of limbo like the rest of the country.

"We are hoping we can go full throttle after the 21st."

In the coming months they hope to embed themselves in the local community and set up a café on site so people can come along to the stables and get refreshments while they visit the horses.

Watch this space!

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