Hippotherapy is the use of horse riding as physiotherapyHippotherapy is a type of physiotherapy that uses the motion of the horse to help to work on specific muscle patterns, helping improve stability and balance. This can then be used to progress skills being learnt in school. For example, with improved trunk control a young person can reach out to touch a button. Or, improved arm and hand control means being able to use a joystick to drive a powered wheelchair.Many areas of the Chailey Heritage Individual Learner Driven (CHILD) Curriculum can also be taught, and reinforced, through hippotherapy.These include:Improved ability to sitPostural and head controlImproved upper limb selective control and dexterityImproved coordination and spatial awarenessA multi-sensory experienceTherapeutic back riding allows the child to sit upright on the horse, with the physiotherapist sitting behind the child in order to better facilitate their posture on the horse.To take part in Hippotherapy, an assessment needs to be carried out with the Hippotherapist as well as providing information regarding the young person's needs. Watch Anastasia's and Elliott's Hippotherapy journey Anastasia’s confidence has grown immensely since she started hippotherapy. She is so happy when she’s riding the pony and she has now gained enough core muscle strength to ride independently, which she is very proud of and so are we! Parent