Five-star hotel or showjumping yard? It’s hard to tell…

Madeleine Silver's avatar
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Published In Features
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(Image credit: credit unknown)

At first glance, it’s difficult to work out whether pictures of showjumper Jamie Gornall’s North Yorkshire yard are computer-generated plans of some kind of equestrian idyll — or if this is real life.

The location
(Image credit: Christiane Slawik, Wuerzburg, Ge)

The location

Jamie Gornall's base at Home Farm, Kirk Hammerton is set in 15 acres of beautiful North Yorkshire countryside between the spa town of Harrogate and historic York.

The rider
(Image credit: Christiane Slawik, Wuerzburg, Ge)

The rider

Jamie's time spent in Germany riding with Olympic gold medallist Ludger Beerbaum has shaped and influenced his design of the yard.

Sensitive design
(Image credit: Christiane Slawik, Wuerzburg, Ge)

Sensitive design

The development of the former dairy farm buildings was completed in late summer 2015, with horses moving in shortly after. The attractive buildings seamlessly combine the original features of the historical buildings with the practicalities of modern materials and facilities.

The stables Gornall Equestrian has 19 stables, which have been created from former dairy farm buildings and include fittings by German company Röwer & Rüb.
(Image credit: creditUnknown)

The stables Gornall Equestrian has 19 stables, which have been created from former dairy farm buildings and include fittings by German company Röwer & Rüb.

The stables Jamie Gornall
(Image credit: creditUnknown)

The stables Jamie Gornall

The tack room
(Image credit: creditUnknown)

The tack room

The yard's stable complex includes a large tack room with under-floor heating to store leatherwork and saddles at an optimum temperature, and beautiful, oak shelving to store rugs and equipment.

The tack room
(Image credit: creditUnknown)

The tack room

Fittings here — and in many other areas of the yard — are provided by Dutch company SeBo. An adjoining laundry room takes care of the yard's daily cleaning requirements with a large industrial washer and dryer.

The indoor school
(Image credit: Christiane Slawik, Wuerzburg, Ge)

The indoor school

The highlight of Home Farm is perhaps the impressive 35x60m indoor riding arena, with its unwaxed surface on an Andrews Bowen Equaflow system favoured by the Global Champions Tour series. The arena building, constructed by German company Gebr Schütt, has a Glulam beam structure to the roof — a natural alternative to steel or concrete — with a light-and-ventilation ridge. A suite of luxurious viewing rooms, styled and decorated by Averil Blundell Interior Design, allows owners to enjoy watching their horses' progress in comfort.

The solarium
(Image credit: Christiane Slawik, Wuerzburg, Ge)

The solarium

An equine resident makes the most of the solarium, with decor to rival a human spa.

Extensive facilities
(Image credit: Christiane Slawik, Wuerzburg, Ge)

Extensive facilities

There is also a large grass arena that was created following consultation with the Sports Turf Research Institute, which provides advice on grass arenas at both Hickstead and Dublin showgrounds. And an all-weather gallop track with a surface by Andrews Bowen encircles the area.

The stables
(Image credit: creditUnknown)

The stables

When not in their deluxe stables, all the horses — including stallions — are turned out in individual paddocks with Centaur equine safety fencing.

Work in progress
(Image credit: Christiane Slawik, Wuerzburg, Ge)

Work in progress

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Madeleine Silver
Madeleine Silver
Former features editor

A graduate from Durham University, Madeleine joined H&H in 2011 and became Features Editor — producing content across the magazine and website, including the popular inside back cover article ‘The horse that made me’ and the weekly ‘The best of my fun…’ interview. She has written on topics as diverse as hay making and headcams, to hot totty in the horse world and circus horses. Madeleine now works as a freelance feature writer for Country Life, The Telegraph, Horse & Hound, cntraveller.com, The Spectator and The Field, as well as writing obituaries for The Times.