Derbyshire Committee

Chairman

I am the BHS Bridleway & Access Officer and do the best I can having to share time between having my own Outside Catering Business, Family & Home to look after and care for my horses. Area’s I am responsible for in Derbyshire as Bridleways Officer are Amber Valley, Erewash, Derby City and South Derbyshire. My job is varied from reporting overgrown vegetation and maintenance problems to getting involved with plans for new routes, path diversions, new road schemes etc. Liaising with riders by attending meetings with local bridleway groups and then passing information onto the local and county councils by attending user group meetings with them. In this way one gets to know the needs of the other. As Bridleway Officer my job amongst others is to encourage the councils to provide more bridleways and multi-user routes to be made available to riders and I have had many successes in this. As Riders your job is to help me to do this by you yourselves getting involved with local councils, attend parish council meetings in your area. Ask what your parish council is doing for you? If a bridleway is overgrown or impassible in your area report it to the parish clerk. The parish council has a duty of care. If that doesn’t work report the problem to county council rights of way Matlock. Get all your fellow riders to ring, write or email to them, DON’T BE APATHETIC about it. We are loosing good bridleways because apathetic riders do not report them being overgrown then they become unusable and are lost. Don’t say you don’t have time, we are all busy, make time it’s important, I will help you where possible.

I help raise funds to help with maintenance problems etc by organizing pleasure rides, come along and join us, have fun and get to meet like minded people.

When time allows I enjoy riding western as you can see in the attached photos and having no cows to round up often I can be seen rounding up my ducks instead (again see photo).