Frontline workers who have been keeping our communities and health system going throughout the lockdown are being offered free equine psychotherapy to help them cope with the trauma's they may be dealing with.

The offer of help has been put forward by Maggie Falconer, who founded Staffordshire and Cheshire Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (SCEAP) as an alternative therapy to more traditional methods.

Maggie told Macclesfield Nub News: "We're providing free sessions to NHS staff and other frontline workers for all those people who have just worked throughout the whole of this crisis. There are some very tired, very broken people coming out of it."

Maggie, who is also the founder of Macclesfield-based charity Cheshire Streetwise, said the equine psychotherapy could help people who may be struggling to cope with the mental toll the pandemic has taken.

She said: "It can help people with all sorts of things such as depression, anxiety, trauma, bereavement, you name it. It can be really beneficial because rather than coming in and speaking to a stranger, in a strange room, you're actually outside with the horses.

"When you meet the horses, they are very much living in the present and they're very tuned into people's body language and energy. Even if you are saying that you are okay, then the horse will actually pick up that you're actually not."

Maggie added: "You don't have to tell me anything. I can observe your body language with the horses and that will tell me so much."

One of the key aspects of the therapy is being able to build a bond with a horse and working with them.

Maggie said they cover things like boundaries, relationships and trust to allow the person to better manage their own emotions.

The service is offered at Great Eaves Farm, in Bucknall, Staffordshire. They received a £45,000 grant from the Community Investment Fund, part of which was used to lay concrete and make the area more accessible, including to wheelchair users.

As well as reaching out to frontline staff who have been working throughout the pandemic, SCEAP is available to those who feel they need it. Maggie said children in care are among those to have benefitted from the service.

SCEAP is a Community Interest Company that is funded through grants so those who need the therapy can access it for free.

"We want everyone to be able to access the therapy. As and when we do get grant funding, that means people can just come to us and they don't have to pay anything," Maggie said.

She added: "We haven't got any funding to run the therapy the Covid-19 workers, we're just offering our services as it's something we feel quite strongly about."

There are seven horses in the herd that are used for the equine psychotherapy as well as two Shetland Pony's for those who may not be comfortable around the larger animals.

To find out more about the service, visit the SCEAP Facebook page or email Maggie on [email protected].