The Accountant-Jan-Feb 2017

TRAVEL
horse sanctuaries – four in South East
England within easy reach of London, and
the other in Scotland. Horses have always
held a special place in the affections of
Britons, but in modern times some people
have found it difficult to maintain the
horses in their care and many horses have
fallen into distressed conditions. Between
them the five Redwings centres rescue
more than 200 horses and donkeys every
year and altogether they care for more than
1,500 animals at any one time, making
Redwings the largest horse sanctuary in
the United Kingdom.
There are three major aspects to the
work of the organisation, starting with the
promotion of the welfare of horses, ponies,
donkeys, and mules through outreach
to schools, colleges, and horse owners.
However, education is not always enough
and Redwings frequently has to rescue,
care for, and rehabilitate horses that have
not been properly looked after. Then, when
abused animals have been taught to trust
humans again, efforts are made to identify
caring families to offer them a new home.
Visitors are welcome from 10am to 4pm
from Friday to Monday each week and get
the chance to interact with the animals
and the dedicated team who care for
them. Apart from tea and cake, there are
no touristy frills – just a chance to spend a
few priceless hours in the countryside and
learn about horses and their needs.
With some of Europe’s biggest and
But, no matter
how many outof-town
visits
you make, you’ll
no doubt still
want to do all the
City sights – and
that is when you
will appreciate
the benefits of a
public transport
system that
works so well
that there is no
need to hire
a car to get
around.
most densely populated cities, Britain has
all the problems of urbanisation, including
homeless people living on the streets,
violent crime, and drugs. But a redeeming
feature is the care that has been taken to
preserve as much as possible of the rural
environment, and to give families the
chance to get away from the inner city
and enjoy nature. Wicksteed Park, in
Kettering, is just North of London off the
M1 motorway, and offers 147 acres of allday,
all-the-year-round outdoor activities.
The park is a registered charity, run with
strong support from volunteers, and
financed from the income from visitors.
Laid out around a central lake,
Wicksteed Park offers a Nature Trail with
small wildlife and birds, an arboretum,
a campsite, and more than 20 different
children’s rides, including a miniature
railway that meanders through the
grounds. There are food outlets and a gift
shop, a caravan site and a luxury lodge, and
a campsite where visitors can sleep over in
tents.
While Wicksteed Park offers a
smorgasbord of the simple rural pleasures
of life, Paulton’s Family Theme Park in the
New Forest in Hampshire near the South
Coast is more glitzy, with activities and
rides themed on kids’ television characters.
Peppa Pig World has seven rides that echo
the lives of the television characters Peppa
and George and children get to meet
the characters themselves. Critter Creek
60 JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2017