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British Racing Launches New Campaign to Address Welfare Concerns

A new communications campaign, HorsePWR, has been launched by British racing, designed to share and promote the facts around welfare in horseracing.

HorsePWR will have its own dedicated website to provide information about the sport and the thoroughbred, the lives they lead and the high welfare and safety standards within racing. The website also explores the areas that racing has committed to improve, from reducing risk on and off the racecourse to better supporting horses when they leave the sport.

The campaign has been led by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), Great British Racing (GBR) and racing's Horse Welfare Board (HWB), with additional funding provided by the Jockey Club.

Kinross-based National Hunt trainer Lucinda Russell said of HorsePWR, “This is just what racing needs. We must provide the facts, help educate and confront the tough questions head on. The facts matter. We understand our responsibility and respect our horses and we want to make sure the public know this too.

“It's good to see us taking a new approach, showing pride in the lives we give our horses and challenging and correcting inaccurate information which is put into the public domain by those who are opposed to the sport.”

Robin Mounsey, BHA head of communications and HWB member, added, “The HorsePWR campaign sees the sport take a new approach when it comes to talking about welfare. It is about being up-front, open and transparent. It is about tackling head-on the elements of the sport that we know are areas of concern and providing information to educate and reassure.

“Those who work in the sport are rightly proud of our record and standards when it comes to welfare. This campaign provides a platform to allow those connected with the sport to share their pride. It will be aimed at racing's current and potential fans, seeking to ensure that future generations of racing followers are not lost to the sport due to negative perceptions around the welfare issues which are tackled by this campaign.”

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Three New Members for Horse Welfare Board

Sulekha Varma, Kate Sigsworth and Robin Mounsey have been appointed to British racing's Horse Welfare Board (HWB).

Varma, head of racing and clerk of the course at Aintree, joins as racecourse representative, while Sigsworth, who is the deputy chair of the Thoroughbred Breeders' Association (TBA), will represent the Thoroughbred Group. Mounsey is head of communications for the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) and will represent that body on the board.

Projects undertaken as part of the sport's 'A Life Well Lived Strategy' include British racing's first Thoroughbred census, which was completed in December 2023. Work is ongoing to develop and improve hurdles and fences in jump racing, as well as research into multiple aspects of ground and going on racecourses, and ongoing support of the sport's charity, Retraining of Racehorses.

The HWB is supported by The Racing Foundation and Horserace Betting Levy Board (HBLB). Since its inception the Racing Foundation has awarded the HWB over £3.5 million and the HBLB has provided £2.2 million.

Barry Johnson, independent chair of the HWB, said, 'We're delighted to welcome Sulekha, Kate and Robin to the team at such a pivotal time for the board, with the culmination of several key projects this year. Their combined knowledge spans the entire sport and will be of huge value to us as we enter the final phase of our current five-year strategy.”

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Horse Welfare Board, Hartpury University Launch Census

British Racing's Horse Welfare Board is launching the first ever Thoroughbred census in Great Britain, in collaboration with Hartpury University.

All owners of former racehorses are being asked to submit a completed census through Dec. 31. The census will help build an improved Thoroughbred data bank about former racehorses and the lives they go on to lead.

Helena Flynn, Programme Director, Horse Welfare Board, said: “Improving the traceability of Thoroughbreds after they retire from racing is a fundamental part of the Horse Welfare Board's five-year welfare strategy. The launch of this census is a significant project to help increase the depth, quality, and volume of data about Thoroughbreds at this important stage of their lives.”

Improved data at this stage of a thoroughbred's life can also help the Horse Welfare Board and RoR improve and adapt welfare initiatives, enabling fast and effective contact in the event of an equine disease outbreak.

The census will request information on each horse's equine identification document (passport) number, microchip number, age, current residence, second career, and more to provide a robust view of the 2023 British retired racehorse population.

The six-month census has been launched in partnership with Retraining of Racehorses (RoR), British Racing's official aftercare charity, funded by the Racing Foundation, and is supported by World Horse Welfare and Weatherbys General Stud Book.

To complete the 2023 Thoroughbred Census online, click here before closing Dec. 31.

Full results will be reported during the first quarter of 2024.

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The Racing Foundation Grants £3M to Horse Welfare Board

The Racing Foundation has awarded the Horse Welfare Board a grant of £3million over three years to support its cross-industry work to improve equine welfare in British racing.

The grant will be used to deliver the horse welfare projects identified in the industry's “A life well-lived” strategy–a five-year plan to ensure the highest standards of welfare for all horses bred for British racing. Released in stages over the next three years, the funding will cover multiple projects to drive forward important developments in safety, data, and traceability along with supporting program and executive team costs.

Obstacle improvement and development and the advancement of the sport's Jump Racing Risk Model (JRRM) are two of the Horse Welfare Board's key safety projects for the first year of the grant. With support from external epidemiology experts, the JRRM will become a one-stop-shop for data on racehorse falls to identify trends and help drive forward the sport's risk management actions.

Helena Flynn, Horse Welfare Board Program Director said, “Since the formation of the team last year, detailed work has been carried out to scope, prioritize, and cost the core initiatives from the Life Well Lived Strategy. To date, we have delivered the implementation of the equine vision project, have redefined racing's responsibility to Thoroughbreds at their first step out of racing and have laid the groundwork for critical data projects. We now have 17 projects live and with the Racing Foundation's core funding secured we can progress at speed.”

For more information on the Horse Welfare Board and its initiatives, click here.

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