Horses for Hope is a trauma and violence informed service, we do not only seek to treat trauma but work to ensure that the service experience will not cause further trauma, harm or distress. At Horses for Hope we do this by ensuring we provide a safe environment for disclosure and understanding the effects of trauma for both human participants and horses.

• Many of the participants and horses who come to our program have experienced the world as overwhelming and unsafe.

• We are aware of the diverse impacts of trauma and the stigmas, structures and fears that obstruct  healing.

• As welcoming hosts, we facilitate an antidote to traumatic experiences by structuring physical, emotional, psychological and cultural safety in all we do.

• Through reciprocal co-regulatory relationships between our staff, participants and horses, we model secure connections sensitive to the lived experiences of trauma.

• We support the people who come to the program to develop confidence in their ability to regulate emotions, offer opportunities for increased decision making and promote the development of personal agency.

• Our reparative processes go beyond traditional healing paradigms, and our participants and horses can come away with seeing new possibilities in their world.