Eventing safety review: what it covers, and why grassroots riders are in it

The facts

What

An independent Eventing Horse and Rider Safety Commission

Set up by

British Eventing, with the British Eventing Support Trust, the FEI and British Equestrian

Chair

Dame Caroline Spelman, former Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and a recent British Horse Society board member

Membership

A majority of members will be independent of the sport

Announced

29 October 2026

British Eventing has announced an independent commission to look at safety across eventing. It has been set up alongside the British Eventing Support Trust, the FEI and British Equestrian, and most of its members will come from outside the sport. The intention is to pull in people from other sports and from safety, welfare, medicine, research and risk management, as well as those who know eventing from the inside.

The chair is Dame Caroline Spelman. She previously served as Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and has recently sat on the board of the British Horse Society. She has said her first step is to listen, that no conclusion has been decided in advance, and that the work will test assumptions while acknowledging the safety improvements already made.

The BE board points to more than two decades passing since the Hartington Report of April 2000, and to a number of recent serious incidents, as the reason for a broad independent look now. The review will take in the systems, policies, practices and culture that shape safety, rather than picking over individual accidents. It will not decide liability or assign blame.

For anyone outside the affiliated circuit, the detail that matters is who will be asked to contribute. The commission is to seek input from a spread of bodies beyond BE itself: the British Horse Society, British Riding Clubs, The Pony Club, and organisations running unaffiliated eventing. BE also lists the safety work already done, including research funding, course design and build standards, frangible technology, ground preparation, medical and veterinary cover, and rider education.

British Equestrian chief executive Jim Eyre said his organisation backs the commission and will respect its independence to reach its own findings, and that recommendations should benefit horses and riders at every level.

What this means for you

Riders at unaffiliated events and Pony Club level

Your corner of the sport is named as a source of evidence, not just the top end. If a call for input appears through your club or organiser, it is worth answering properly.

Affiliated eventers

Expect scrutiny of the whole system — courses, ground, medical cover, education and culture — rather than a single rule change.

Anyone hoping for answers on a specific accident

This is not that. Re-examining individual incidents and deciding who was at fault are both outside the remit.

Organisers and officials

Existing safety work is to be examined objectively, including where it is and is not delivering results.

What to do

1. Note that the commission is independent and chaired by Dame Caroline Spelman, so expect findings on systems and culture rather than a quick rule tweak

   Now

2. If your club, riding club branch or unaffiliated organiser circulates a request for rider experience, respond rather than leaving it to others

   When it appears

3. Meanwhile, do your own housekeeping: check the condition and fit of your hat and body protector before your next cross-country outing

   Before you next run

4. Ask your usual organisers what medical and veterinary cover they provide, so you know before you enter

   Before entering