Our Legal Documents..

Clients need assurance that we as a company both understand and fully comply with our obligations in respect of the legal requirements which are necessary in order for us to provide our services to public organisations and private individuals alike. Our insurance, licence, risk assessment and welfare documents are provided to clients prior to the booking being finalised.

For your peace of mind please find details here of our compliance with the laws of the land and the additional provisions we have made to ensure the health and well-being of our staff, animals and clients.

In October 2018, new stringent animal licensing laws came into force in England by way of The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018. 

Jo is extremely proud to have been awarded the highest 5-Star licence for her animals and stables under this legislation.

• Licence for the hiring out of horses (horses to include donkeys) – Schedule 5 of above Act of Parliament
• Licence for keeping or training animals for exhibition (petting animals) – Schedule 7 of above Act of Parliament

For any licence to be granted there are General Conditions which have to be met in addition to Specific Conditions which relate to the type of licence applied for. In order to gain the highest possible rating there are optional Higher Standards which, if attained, result in a 5-Star licence being awarded.

Without appropriate insurance, any licences obtained to operate services such as ours are invalid. Anyone offering such services without suitable insurance is breaking the law. Life between the ears are fully insured through the excellent Cliverton Insurance Brokers (SEIB) who provide comprehensive cover for our activities including:

• Public liability indemnity
• Employers liability indemnity
• Hiring out of assorted animals for petting
• Assisted therapy donkey & pony visits to care/educational establishments, etc., including taking the animals indoors
• Assisted therapy visits by petting animals to care/educational establishments, etc., including taking the animals indoors
• Equine Facilitated Learning

Health & Safety

At Life between the ears we take Health and Safety very seriously in all aspects of the running of our business and we have:

• Active Health & Safety policy documents for all locations where the donkeys & other animals are grazed or stabled

We offer the utmost care whilst transporting their precious cargo to events so as to ensure the safety of the donkeys and ponies themselves and other road users.

This care and attention is carried by our staff throughout their whole engagement with the event until the donkeys are safely fed and watered and in their stables at the end of the day.

There are three different levels of screening for DBS Certificates and it is important that clients looking to book services which are to be provided to children or other vulnerable adults take steps to make sure that the appropriate certificates are in the possession of the staff who will be attending their event.

Jo @ Life between the ears has an Enhanced DBS Certificate, the highest level obtainable. 

Depending upon the service you have booked, you will receive the appropriate risk assessment via email upon the commencement of the booking procedure.

We have extensive risk assessment documentation for all activities provided for by Life between the ears as follows:

• Donkey and pony petting and parades
• Petting farm private bookings
• Donkey & pony assisted therapy visits inside buildings

Since every location we attend is different and therefore presents unique conditions, an extensive risk assessment is carried out by our staff upon their arrival and we always seek to liaise with individuals charged with the responsibility for Health and Safety at the event.

Throughout the duration of the hire, our staff continually monitor the conditions and, if they observe anything which compromises the safety of the donkeys and ponies or the attending public, they will stop operating and alert the organisers to restore a safe working environment.