HIPB publishes three year-plan to strengthen racing

The independently chaired Horseracing Industry People Board (HIPB) has published its workforce strategy, which aims to secure a brighter future for everyone working in British racing and breeding.

Covering an initial three-year period, Our People, Racing’s Future sets out a vision for ensuring racing is an attractive, rewarding and fulfilling industry in which to work, where people feel supported to build a career and achieve their potential. 

Our People, Racing’s Future has been approved by racing’s leaders, with the Industry Programme Group – which includes cross-industry representation – and the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) Board endorsing the findings and recommended programme of meaningful activity, to be delivered over an initial three-year period.

Starting in 2025, the strategy will prioritise immediate action to support those in horse-facing roles, addressing critical staffing shortages and reducing pressure on those in the most demanding positions. Work is already underway in several key areas, including:

• Expanding vocational training to equip new entrants into the industry with essential skills
• Targeted recruitment campaigns to attract and retain work riders, racing grooms, stud hands and other key personnel
• Strengthening mental and physical health support services
• Creating clear employment standards and a consistent approach to drug and alcohol testing
• Consolidated data sets across the industry.

Developed following extensive engagement with those working in the industry and experts who have driven successful change in other sectors, and underpinned by data and evidence, the strategy marks the first time an industry-wide plan has been agreed with a singular focus on racing and breeding’s workforce.

From recruitment and training to employment standards and wellbeing, the strategy addresses the most pressing challenges facing the industry, while looking longer-term at how racing can evolve to meet the changing needs and expectations of a modern working environment.

But it is also clear that more needs to be done – and in a more joined-up way – to improve the working lives of the people who make the sport possible, particularly in training yards and breeding operations, where pressures of the racing calendar, long hours, staffing vacancies and critical skills gaps can be most keenly felt.

To achieve this, the strategy brings together new and existing activity into five main themes:

• Recruitment – attracting more people with suitable skills and widening racing’s appeal as a desirable career choice, particularly to young people
• Training and development – enhancing the skills of both the existing workforce and new entrants by modernising training provision, embedding continuous learning opportunities and creating clear career pathways 
• Employment practices – retaining talent in the industry by ensuring people feel happy, safe and supported, with more consistent employment standards and flexible working patterns to meet the evolving expectations of a modern workforce 
• Inclusion – making sure that everyone can thrive in a welcoming, diverse and respectful working environment that always promotes positive behaviours
• Wellbeing – strengthening mental and physical health provision by bolstering support services and improving safety measures and working practices.

Underpinning these key areas will be a more coordinated approach to communicating with racing’s workforce, so that people know what services are available and feel their views are being listened to by industry leaders. 

The workforce strategy presents an important first step, setting out a strategic vision that now needs to be delivered with the support of individuals and organisations from across the industry. This will inevitably take time to achieve, and it is likely the strategy will continue to develop and evolve over its three-year cycle.