Friday 19th September 2025:

One of Britain’s best-loved racehorses has paid a special visit to spinal injury patients, families
and staff at Salisbury District Hospital, to celebrate the launch of Horatio’s Garden as the
official Charity Partner of Wincanton Racecourse for the upcoming 2025/26 racing season.
This exciting partnership will shine a spotlight on the transformative work of Horatio’s Garden,
a national charity that creates and looks after beautiful gardens in NHS spinal injury centres
across the UK.

The first garden created by Horatio’s Garden opened in 2012 and is located in the heart of the
spinal centre at Salisbury District Hospital, just 30 miles from the Wincanton Racecourse.
With both organisations rooted in the heart of the community, the collaboration aims to raise
both awareness and vital funds to support Horatio’s Garden’s gardening, workshops and event
programme and care for the garden which offers a place for adjustment, privacy, solace, joy
and companionship for everyone who needs it.

At an event to mark the launch of the partnership, patients and their families along with those
from the racecourse, hospital and Horatio’s Garden were joined by 2022 Badger Beer Chase
winner Frodon - the first time a horse has entered the garden.

Now aged 13, Frodon was one of British Jump racing’s most popular horses during a career
which spanned eight-and-a-half years and saw him win 19 of his 52 races, including the
prestigious King George VI Chase and Ryanair Chase at the Cheltenham Festival, on the way
to securing £1.2 million in total prize money. He also helped his jockey Bryony Frost become
the first female jockey to win a race over fences at the Cheltenham Festival, before his
retirement nearly two years ago.

Attending the launch event at Salisbury District Hospital was Champion Hurdle winning trainer
Jeremy Scott and his daughter Laura. Laura was a patient at The Duke of Cornwall Spinal
Treatment Centre at Salisbury District Hospital for three months in 2017 following a riding
accident that left her with a broken neck in two places which went into her spinal cord and
two bones in her lower back, leaving her initially paralysed from the neck down.

Speaking during the event, Laura Scott said: “The garden is just amazing. As a patient you
spend so long shut between the walls of a hospital ward, so to have the opportunity to come
outside and enjoy the fresh air and feel a little bit normal for a few hours is really important.

“It is important for visitors to be able to come to see you and not feel like they are visiting you
in a hospital and you just feel like you’re at home or in another garden elsewhere.”

Reflecting on how the visit from Ryanair Chase winner Frodon will impact the patients, Laura
continued: “These guys are going to be on such a high for a few days now. You don’t get this
sort of thing in a hospital normally, so they’re going to be buzzing for a while now.
“Unless you’ve experienced having a spinal injury or know someone who has had one, you
probably don’t really know that these gardens are here, and I think it is really important to
showcase that to everyone and explain how important the funding is to keep them going and
hopefully get more around the country.”

Blaithin Murphy, General Manager at Wincanton Racecourse, added: “We are absolutely
delighted that Horatio’s Garden will be our Charity Partner of the Season. Their work has a
profound impact on the lives of thousands of people going through incredibly difficult times.

“To be able to bring Frodon into Horatio’s Garden today to bring a little bit of joy to the patients
and the staff here has been really special. Frodon has been an absolute star and enjoyed
plenty of apples that are grown here in the garden. We’d like to thank Jimmy Frost and his team
for bringing him up for the morning - we know a lot of people won’t forget today.
“As a sport, we know that there are risks involved every time a jockey gets up on a horse and
charities such as Horatio’s Garden have been vital in supporting them in their recovery. We
look forward to working together to raise awareness and funds for such an inspiring cause,
while offering our visitors the chance to engage with a charity that makes a real difference.”

Katie Tait, CEO at Horatio’s Garden, said: “We are proud to partner with Wincanton
Racecourse and so look forward to working together throughout the year. We hope to see as
many supporters as possible at the special raceday on October 26th
, where all money raised
will make real difference. It’s with the support of organisations like Wincanton Racecourse
that we can continue our vital work to support people with lifechanging spinal injuries in our
beautiful gardens.”

Throughout the season, Wincanton Racecourse will host a range of fundraising initiatives,
including the Charity Raceday on Sunday 26th October, all in aid of Horatio’s Garden. The
partnership offers racegoers the chance to learn more about the charity’s mission and to
contribute to its critical role in support rehabilitation for patients and their families during long
and challenging stays in spinal centres.

This partnership marks a new chapter in Wincanton’s commitment to championing local and
national causes that resonate with the racing community.

To find out more about the partnership and upcoming raceday events visit
www.thejockeyclub.co.uk or www.horatiosgarden.org.uk/ and to purchase tickets for theCharity Raceday, please visit here.