Tessa Jowell MP

Tessa Jowell was delighted that Ebony Horse Club received the recognition they deserve with a visit by the Duchess of Cornwall in September.

The club released a statement as follows:

The Ebony Horse Club was delighted to welcome Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cornwall on Thursday (11 September).

After a tragic year during which the Horse Club lost youth worker Nathan Foster to gun crime, its Founder Ros Spearing (pictured right with Tessa) said:

"The visit of Her Royal Highness is wonderful recognition of the achievements of the young riders and the hard work of so many people since 1996.

"The Horse Club has now fulfilled all the conditions necessary for the construction of a horse riding centre for Brixton. All that remains is to raise the £1.4 million required to commence the building works.

"We are appealing for major donors to come forward for this distinctive project which forms part of the British Equestrian Federation’s Olympic Legacy in one of the most deprived areas of London."

Local MP Tessa Jowell said:

"The Ebony Horse Club, and particularly those who give their time and support to it, provides an inspiration to the young people they work with.

"There is no more powerful way of creating ambition and aspiration, getting young people off the streets, inviting them away from the destructive life of gangs, than to engage them in an enterprise like the Ebony Horse Club.

"I am proud that this fantastic organisation is there for my constituents."