Volunteer with horses
Turn your unbridled enthusiasm for horses into an amazing volunteering role.
Get ready for a volunteer role that will change your life and those of horses too
Our horse team volunteers support a real variety of horses, from dinky Shetlands to majestic thoroughbreds and towering shires. And whether you’re interacting with the horses hands-on or helping them indirectly, you’ll be making a big difference to the lives of every one.
However you help our horses, you’ll become part of a brilliant team with an incredible wealth of knowledge, in turn helping you develop your skills in all areas of horse care and behaviour.
We have a variety of volunteer roles available, both working directly with horses and providing essential support behind the scenes. We’d absolutely love to have you onboard, but please be aware that our horse team positions do require previous experience with horses and/or expertise in their care. Please do get in touch with our team if you’re unsure about your suitability for a role.
When people have thanked me for helping I feel like it should be me saying thank you for the chance to spend time with the horses! I was horse mad when I was young, and never thought I'd be without them in my life. Discovering the horse volunteer role at Burford has given me the chance to reignite my love for them.
Make a direct difference to the animals you love
We have roles for horse experienced people to directly help the horses in our care. Some of our horses and ponies have had a rough start or carry deep trauma. Earning the trust of a horse is always special – helping these horses learn to love again can be truly magical.
Our hands on horse roles are:
Horse care volunteer
Based at one of our two centres this role supports our team with the day to day care of horses and ponies
Regional horse volunteer
Requiring a high level of horse experience this role visits horses in foster care and in their new homes to check in and ensure they are happy and healthy
Horse fosterer
Based in your own yard this role provides a safe haven and support to horses and ponies until they find their forever home.
Horse driver
Based in our centres but also in the regions, our horse drivers transport horses to or from their homes and support our regional team
You don’t have to be hands-on to help our horses
You can have a big impact on our horses’ welfare without having to care for them directly. We have a range of hands-off volunteering roles that make a huge difference – our horse team couldn’t run without them.
Hands-off volunteer roles within our horse team include:
Horse admin volunteer
Help us find new homes and see our horses happily off to them faster by making sure all their important paperwork is up to date.
Horse Tack and Rug Shed volunteer
This role has an amazing positive double-impact: you’ll be helping to raise vital funds for Blue Cross and helping horse owners to buy quality kit for their equine friends at an affordable price.
Voices for Horses
This digital role shares our horse stories and promotes the horses we have available for rehoming as widely as possible to fellow horse lovers on social media.
How to apply
To find horse volunteering opportunities in your area, please click the link below and add your postcode into the search box.
Horse volunteering FAQ
For all our hands on roles you will definitely need previous experience of handling horses. Our highly skilled team will support you to develop your skills and knowledge but we do need people with a good understanding of horses and their behaviour for these roles. Horse experience isn’t crucial for our hands off roles but as you’ll be talking about horses, supporting with horse specific admin and selling equine equipment some knowledge would be very helpful.
No. Blue Cross has a Volunteer Expenses Policy and we will cover any out-of-pocket expenses you may incur whilst volunteering in line with that policy. If you foster our horses Blue Cross pay for all veterinary and farrier costs.
Not always. Some of our horse care roles are completely based from home.
Centre based roles
- Horse care volunteer
- Horse Tack and Rug Shed volunteer
- Horse admin volunteer
- Home based roles
- Regional horse volunteer
- Horse fosterer
Could be at a centre or from home
- Voices for Horses
- Horse driver
We have dedicated Volunteer Coordinators and Foster Coordinators who are responsible for recruiting and supporting our volunteers. Day to day, every volunteer has a named manager they can talk to.
Whilst we are looking for people with a level of existing horse knowledge, you will be able to develop new skills in our horse roles. We offer a thorough induction and full training on any systems or equipment you’ll need to use. Our team will always share their knowledge and expertise with you so whatever your role we’ll ensure you have all the training you’ll need to thrive.
