Is it right for YO to charge instructor to teach??

[monkeybum13]

This does not happen at my yard, but a yard locally. The YO has introduced a fee for instructors teaching, saying they have to pay £x to teach in the school. Her reasoning being that instructor is making money from her land so should pay. Surely if this is the case then farriers/vets etc should have to pay too? and doesn't the students livery cover use of arena anyway?

Your opinions please..
(sorry if this doesn't make sense)

[JoJo_]

My YO doesnt charge but I know she could if she wanted to and other yards do this. I wouldnt be happy if a charge like this was brought in and it would be a negative if I was looking at a new yard. But I guess YOs have every right to. Freelance instructors are making money using the YOs facilities.

[Moggyinmanolos]

I think that's stupid. If a livery is hiring out the school for an hour for a lesson then that's the end of the cost as far as i am concerned, i think that's ridiculous

[MrsMozart]

I would have thought the livery charge covered such things. I agree that instructors should have their own insurance.

[maestro]

Knowing the cost of building a school I can understand where the YO is coming from, freelance trainers are effectively earning off the YO investment. So a small charge shouldnt be a problem, the livery is paying for the use not the trainer.

[Lizzie66]

I sort of agree, if your livery charge includes use of the school.
However if you normally have to share the use of the school, ie you aren't allowed to prebook it for exclusive use, then allowing a livery to have a lesson pretty much stops all other liveries using the school when the lesson is going on. So you could understand it then.

We had a similar position at our yard and I started taking my daughter to her instructor as paying travel time for the instructor and also having to pay for the school made it too expensive.

There might be insurance implications as well.

[jrp204]

There is a yard local to us where YO will not allow other instructors to teach there at all, you have to have lessons with her or go elsewhere!

[SophieP]

I understand this as we have invested 10's of thousands so why should someone else make their living from my property?

I do not allow external instructors to teach at my centre as I am a BHS instructor and have a 2 excellent BHSI's who visit regularly to provide variety. I make a fee from their clinics which makes it viable alternative to run the clinic whilst I get a day off.

[PucciNPoni]

Hmm, maybe not a charge to the instructor but to the livery who wants it for exclusive use? I suppose this would trickle down to the person getting the lesson in the end, anyway.

I'd sort of wondered to myself if the YO might ever introduce a nominal fee to keep the school held for an hour or whatever. For example, we have an indoor school which the YO lets out for £20 / hour to outsiders. But she could theoretically charge a fiver, say to any liveries who wants a private lesson with exlusive use for an hour.

I've never heard of charging the instructor. But I can guarantee that if that was the case on my yard/my RI - i'd end up paying it anyway...same as if I was to hire another school where they have good jumping facilities - I'd have to pay for that AND my instructors time.

[monkeybum13]

Oh I forgot to add, this is not for personal use. It is large yard and has two arenas but you will often find someone having a lesson with others using the school at the same time.