More livery yards will close if action is not taken to support them, the industry has been warned, which would mean a lack of options for owners.
Cheryl Johns, founder of yard owners’ and managers’ platform Livery List, spoke at the National Equine Forum on 5 March, about her latest survey on yard pricing.
“I work with a large community of yard managers and owners and therefore understand the trends and challenges they face,” she said “Over the last two to three years, costings have been a major concern, especially over viability. Since Covid, the cost-of-living crisis, increases in the national minimum wage and increases in forage costs and availability have provided a major concern for these business owners. In recent times, many yards have closed down due to being financially unsustainable.”
Ms Johns said many owners run yards owing to a love of horses rather than business, and that many struggle with pricing; she frequently sees queries on this, from how to implement increases to people asking “What should I charge?” This led Ms Johns to conduct her pricing survey, in December, and there were 768 responses. The full results are online; Ms Johns said the trend in all categories of livery was major gaps between the highest and lowest prices charged.
For DIY, for example, the average price was £201 per month but the minimum was £75 and the maximum £500. For full ridden livery, the average price was £1,010 but the minimum and maximum were £450 and £2,123 respectively.
“One of the most interesting results was that for full livery as an example, over 12 months, there’s a representative difference of £20,000 separating the highest and lowest prices,” she said. “This is for one horse owner over 12 months for the same livery package. It’s also interesting that some yards charge as little for full livery as some charge for DIY, showing the scope of differences in the fees available to horse owners.”
Livery prices: different factors
Ms Johns said factors behind the variation in pricing include location, facilities, services and operating costs, but that yard and horse owners should also consider staff, welfare standards, financial and legal compliance and the experience of the human client.
“There’s also a lack of governance in the industry,” she said. “There’s no licensing, no dedicated regulatory body, no mandatory inspections, which means it’s fairly inconsistent, and that anybody can open a livery yard and operate as they wish.
“Some examples are employment obligations, such as paying the national minimum wage, being appropriately insured, yards that do or don’t pay business rates, biosecurity protocols, quantity and quality of forage and feed –. All these have a major effect on operating costs, which are passed on to the horse owner. Yards who don’t meet expected standards in these areas, and more, can compromise the health and welfare of the equines in their care. These yards who don’t operate meeting industry standards also undermine and undervalue those who do.”
Ms Johns said horse owners must do their due diligence when choosing a livery yard, but that there is a lack of guidance and support for yard owners.
One-woman mission
“For many years, I’ve been on a one-woman mission to represent and support yard owners and managers, including the development of initiatives to try to help future-proof this industry for business owners and horse owners,” she said.
“These initiatives help bridge the gap, but the industry as a whole needs to consider what systems, regulations and support can be put in place to better support the future of livery yards; this must cover all areas, including welfare, business support, compliance, employment, financial viability and legal and moral obligations.
“This is a challenging industry and without change, it will only get harder. More yards will close, and there will be limited options for quality, affordable livery for horse owners. We also need to support and educate horse owners to understand expected standards and questions they should be asking when they’re seeking a new yard, to ensure they find somewhere safe, suitable and compliant to keep their horse, rather than simply making a choice based on the cost.
“We all know the social value of equestrianism, the communities it supports and the joy it brings, and most importantly, it is vital to keep equestrianism and horse ownership safe, accessible and affordable for all.”
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