The BEF regional team, funded by Sport England, is made up of 5 part-time Regional Development Co-ordinators (RDCs) covering 9 regions in England, and led by Head of Regional Development Maggie Still.
As well representing a region, each member of the team has key areas of specialism (see individual biographies below). The team feed all this information back to the BEF to help strategically shape the Federation, and ensure our member bodies can maximise the opportunities that are available to them, whether that is from government schemes or commercial partners.
The aim of the Regional team is to make it easier for Equestrian sports to communicate with potential partners with one voice, giving our sport greater cohesion and authority at local level.
The team also support the Federation's member bodies in the delivery of Sport England funded projects. Between the period 2009 and 2013 the BEF secured £4.2m of funding from Sport England, which is distributed annually to projects within our Member Bodies.
Awards are made to those who can meet the required criteria and help Sport England meet targets to Grow, Sustain and Excel:
Grow
• More people taking part in sport
• More children and young people taking part in five hours of PE and sport a week
Sustain
• More people satisfied with their sporting experience
• 25% fewer 16-18 year olds dropping out
Excel
• Improved talent development
The most successful projects have come out of our member bodies working collectively such as:
www.goaffiliated.co.uk - A joint initiative across the Olympic disciplines to encourage more people to affiliate and to volunteer at affiliated events.
Regional Foundation Squads - Five Regional Foundation Squads aiming to produce a pool of up and coming talented riders in the Olympic disciplines.
Contact the Regional Teams:
Head of Regional Development: Maggie Still
maggie.still@bef.co.uk Mobile: 07718 526366
As the executive lead for the Participation work within the Federation, Maggie leads the BEF Regional Development and Regional Foundation Squad Coordinator teams.
She is a former International athlete, previously employed as Head of Coaching at UK Athletics and is also an Executive Coach. Maggie understands the nature of Sport England and other funding bodies and has worked with the BEF team to guide the Federation through funding application processes to secure £4.2 million of funding for equestrian sport for the period 2009 - 2013. Since starting at the BEF she has taken up riding again and purchased Jeffrey, a 17.2hh Hanoverian cross. Maggie’s wealth of knowledge in the sports sector, combined with learning to own and ride a horse, helps the BEF get a great insight into our sport; in particular how we can encourage more people to get involved, stay involved, and excel
Click on the below links to be directed to the Regional Development Coordinator in your region:
London
West Midlands and the North West
East Midlands and the East
South West and the South East
The North East and Yorkshire
