(British Dressage) – British Dressage Scotland, in partnership with the Pony Club in Scotland, are organising a Talent Development Series in 2012. This will comprise 4 Qualifiers, and a Final to be held in October 2012. Further information on the dates and locations of both qualifiers and final is given below.

The aims of the series are:

• To identify young riders with talent and enthusiasm for dressage;
• To advise them, and encourage correct training; and
• To give them the opportunity to meet others with similar ambitions.

The ultimate aim of the Series is to help talented young riders on to the pathway of the Sportscotland Performance programme, which is currently administered by Horsescotland.

The Series will run in a trial format for 2012, and if successful, will be rolled out as a 4-year programme from 2013.

The venues for the Qualifiers have been chosen to cover as wide an area of Scotland as possible. This should allow most potential participants to attend a qualifier within a manageable drive from their home base.

The dates, venues and Assessors for Qualifiers and the Final are as follows:

Qualifiers
30 Jul Easter Rattray Farm,Blairgowrie, PH10 7HQ Mary McFarlane/Victoria Gladwyn
31 Jul Fountain EC, Aberdeen, AB21 7NX Mary McFarlane/Victoria Gladwyn
6 Aug Maidenhill Farm, Newton Mearns, G77 6RT Les Smith/Victoria Gladwyn
7 Aug SNEC, West Lothian, EH52 6NH Les Smith/Victoria Gladwyn

FINAL
27 Oct SNEC, West Lothian, EH52 6NH Harry Payne/Kirsty Parrish

The Series is open to any rider aged 10 – 25 years. Entrants need not be members of British Dressage, the British Dressage BYRDS Scheme, the Pony Club or a Riding Club in order to participate, since one of the aims of the Series is to encourage any young rider with talent and enthusiasm for dressage.

However, riders who are currently on the Horsescotland Performance Group and those who have been awarded a GB pocket badge are not eligible to take part.  Only riders resident in Scotland can participate.