Decades after leaving school early, Catherine Foley from Carrick-On-Suir, Co. Tipperary, went back to education, became a therapeutic riding instructor and opened her own business.

Catherine received support from the national Back To Work Enterprise Allowance (BTWEA) and Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) both made available in her area by South Tipperary Development Company. She believes it is never too late to return to education and to start your own business.

Speaking about her journey to Changing Ireland, to community workers, and recently to a government minister, Catherine said that after leaving school early, she began learning about horses.

“When I was 16 I got the chance to go to work for Pat Flynn, the racehorse trainer. Pat taught me everything, from mucking out the stable, making sure everything was perfect, and that the welfare of the animal was the priority.”

In her late twenties and early thirties, she did voluntary work helping adults with special needs at Camphill Communities, while she would also work as a Special Needs Assistant helping children on a school bus:

“I tried my hand at everything, from taxi driving to working in a factory. But indoor work was never going to be for me (and) I was never going to be a doctor or a solicitor.”

She knew she enjoyed working with horses, and with people with special needs, and eventually she saw a path to combining the two.

“I loved special needs kids and I loved rescuing animals. Then I went on a Tús programme (a community work placement scheme) and I put it together,” she said. She did research on horse therapy for children with special needs and approached Anita Holloway, SICAP development worker with South Tipperary Development Company about doing horse therapy.

Speaking about her early meetings with Catherine, Anita says, “I first met Catherine in March of 2022 when she was here for her Tús placement. She was offered the opportunity to engage with SICAP, which is purely on a voluntary basis, which she took up. She told me about her dream to become a therapeutic riding coach. She felt that it wasn’t attainable because of funding, returning to education, all the different barriers.

“We discussed it and we started looking at possible ways to fund the course, to help Catherine to complete it. Catherine fell under two core areas of work for SICAP – she wanted to return to formal education and she wanted that education to lead to employment or self-employment.”

“There were many challenges and barriers for Catherine to undertake this course. The work of SICAP is to remove those barriers and try to help a person to become more confident and to be able to progress to formal education after having left school early.

“The main challenge for myself as the SICAP worker was to secure the funding,” she said. Ultimately, Catherine accessed three funding streams to pay the €1,950 course, with South Tipperary Development Company paying her deposit, while she received a Department of Social Protection training support grant and support from her local SVP branch’s education fund.

Catherine had turned 50 shortly before starting the course, and after a long time out of education was nervous about undertaking assignments.

“We would sit down together and look at what she was being asked. We would break them down, simplify them and she would go away and do the research,” said Anita.

Catherine was delighted she had done it when she completed her Level 6 course in therapeutic coaching.

“It was worth every early morning and late nights getting home from Wicklow, it was worth the whole lot of it,” she says.

 

• Catherine Foley met Minister Jerry Buttimer in Tipperary town in June and told him her experience.

She believes that it is never too late to return to learning: “No matter what age you are, you can always go back and do what you love.”

As well as children with special needs, she is also seeking to help adults with mental health issues.

She says she wouldn’t have gone so far except for the support made available through South Tipperary Development Company and feels people should take support from such organisations.

“They will help you with every aspect of your business,” she says.

In June, Catherine met Minister of State Jerry Buttimer on a visit to Tipperary town and told him her story. Minister Buttimer has special responsibility for Community Development and Charities, and Rural Transport. Her experience has also been highlighted in a case-study by South Tipperary Development Company.

More information on SICAP is available at https://www.pobal.ie/programmes/social-inclusion-and-community-activation-programme-sicap-2024-2028/

More information on the Back to Work Enterprise Allowance is at https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-social-protection/services/back-to-work-enterprise-allowance/

To find out more about Local Development Companies in your area go to https://ildn.ie/directory/

Voices from the saddle back Moyross Youth Academy all the way