Elisabeth Svendsen Trust

Est Manchester is 6 years old this month. It was March 2004 when the doors first opened to the public and since then we have gone from strength to strength. The empty building and stable yard was completed in January and signed over for use, we started with five members of staff Debbie, Centre Principal, Emma, Robina and Joy Riding Instructors, Paul the Warden, two stools and a fold away table! The first job was to write a huge shopping list for all the equipment we needed for the centre and the donkeys, this was everything from knives and forks for the kitchen to grooming brushes for the donkeys.

Two months later we were ready for the donkeys to arrive. Everybody was very excited. We had Cocoa, Souffle, Theo and Sovereign join us from Est Leeds and a small group from Buxton making 13 in total. We were also joined by more staff Adele Riding Instructor, Neil Maintenance, Kath the Cook and Lindsey Centre Coordinator. So our doors opened, our first rides started in June on a small scale and by the start of the new school year in September were busy, busy, busy and still are today, with every week 120 children riding the donkeys, nearly 40 visitors to see the donkeys and we travel to 2 outreaches per week. All this would not be possible without the continual help from our supporters, so from everyone at Est Manchester a heartfelt Thank You.