Owners & Keepers

This section of the website is intended to provide everything that an owner or keeper needs.

If you require more information contact the PPA Office on info@p2pa.co.uk

What’s New for 2025-2026

New for 2025/2026 season:

First season Rider Qualification Certificates cost £95, as subsidised by the PPA and PPROA.
Please be aware of new helmet and body protector requirements, click here for information.
All Owners, Keepers and Officials please be aware of changes for the new season. See BHA Regulations and Instructions 2025/2026 tab below.
Rider assessments can now be booked directly with Registered Jockey Coaches. Cost of £150 is now subsidised by the PPA with a rider contribution of £20.
New 10 race 'Hands and Heels Series' introduced for novice riders only.
Novice rider allowances increased from 5 wins to 10 wins, claimable in all races except maidens and p2p flat races.
New 10 race '0-110 Rated Series' with final at Warwick Racecourse on 9th May 2026.
New 15 race '£250,000 GB Bonus Series' for 4 and 5 year old maidens.
All p2p horses must be registered on Weatherby's Vaccination app
Minimum of 3 vets at fixtures irrespective of number of entries/runners.

Trainers and Owners

If you are buying a horse yourself to race in point-to-points, you will need to check that the horse you are interested in is eligible to run, by reading through the eligibility criteria. It would also be helpful to familiarise yourself with the point-to-point rules and regulations.

Colours

Point-to-point owners do not need to officially register their colours unless the horse will be running on a licenced racecourse, e.g. in a Hunter Chase.

Change of Ownership and Keeper/Trainer Forms

If you have recently purchased, or are planning to buy, a horse with a current Hunter Certificate, you need to make sure that a change of ownership form has been completed and sent to the Equine Services Department at Weatherbys within 30 days. If an owner changes keeper/trainer, you must also complete a form.

If you are an owner looking for a keeper, take a look at our Find a Trainer Directory.

Registering a Hunter Certificate

2025/26 HUNTER CERTIFICATE AVILABLE FROM 1ST OCTOBER

Before your horse can race, it must have a registered Hunter Certificate, which should be completed and returned to Weatherbys before the Hunter Certificate deadline for the meeting at which you wish to run – this is usually 12.00 midday on the Thursday a week prior to the meeting. A Hunter Certificate must be re-registered for your horse each season. However, Hunter Certificates for Members Races do not always have to be registered – check Regulations 32 and 33 for further detail.

The form is fairly self-explanatory but has had a few changes in recent seasons, including recognising that the Keeper/Trainer now has responsibility for the horse unless stated otherwise. Please note that the form can be completed electronically, but you must download the file first, then save your changes before submission. The form requires signatures from the main Owner, the Keeper and from an official of a Hunt, for it to be correctly registered. Each are on different pages to allow more than one person to complete the form at the same time.

Joining the PPORA

The PPORA is the membership body that represents point-to-point owners and riders. To find out more about joining and the benefits of membership, you can visit www.ppora.co.uk or call them on 07513 101659 or email membership@ppora.co.uk

For any queries relating to Hunter Certificates, please contact the Weatherbys Equine Services Department on 01933 304808 or at huntercerts@weatherbys.co.uk

VE06 Vaccination App User Guide

OK07 Hunter Certificate 2025/26

Sponsorship and Finance

Individual owners or keepers may both register under the PPA's Horse Sponsorship Scheme (HSS), which allows the horses in their respective ownership or care to receive sponsorship from a business in return for advertising. Once registered, logos can be placed on the paddock sheet, across the chest and neck of the owner’s colours and on the horse attendant's clothing. Note that only Single Horse Owner sponsorship (HSS1) is highlighted in the racecard

Single-Horse Sponsorship – sponsorship amounts of a minimum of £150 per horse and maximum of £950 should be in place, being paid directly to the owner. Registration can be made at the time of lodging a Hunter Certificate or afterwards, by completing the HSS1 form. A fee of £60 is payable for each horse at the time of registration.

Multi-Horse Sponsorship – registration can be made by either an owner or keeper completing the HSS2 form. A fee is payable at the time of registration, dependent on the number of horses in the yard (1 to 5 horses: £150; 6 to 10 horses: £325; 11+ horses: £600). Please note that the fee has been increased this season, having been held for several years. It is the owner or keeper’s responsibility to ensure that the payments are correct for the number of horses registered during the season. Keepers should bear in mind, when registering a Multi-Horse Sponsorship, that an owner can, at any time, withdraw their horse(s) from the sponsorship and that no refund of the initial registration fee will be made.

Where a horse is dual sponsored as part of both Single- and Multi-Horse sponsorship, no single sponsorship site can carry more than one sponsor’s logo.

In order to carry Sponsorship in Hunter Chases, a separate registration is required under the Rules of Racing.

OK08 Horse Sponsorship Scheme Guidelines

OK09 Single Horse Sponsorship Form

OK10 Multi Horse Sponsorship Form

Entering a Race

A full list of scheduled point-to-point races and their conditions are available in The Planner which is available to purchase at the start of the season at the P2P Shop. It also includes useful information for owners, including the National Championships and an abridged version of the regulations. This is the only place to find detailed race conditions and is important as the race conditions allow you to place your horse in races based on its level of ability to give it the best chance of winning. During the season, any updates to the Planner are available exclusively in the Digital Planner, which can also be ordered from the Shop.

When your horse's Hunter Certificate has been registered, you will receive a confirmation letter which – if it is your first horse –will contain details on how to log-in to the online entries system (this is only available to either the Keeper or the Owner, as selected on the Hunter Certificate form). You can enter all races either through this system.

Payment for entries can only be made by Credit or Debit Card. When entering through the online entries system, once you are happy with the payment details, you will be redirected to a secure payment gateway where the transaction can be completed. You should not close your browser window until the transaction has completed and you have been redirected to the pointtopointentries.co.uk website, otherwise the entry will not be registered.

For every race in which a horse is entered, an administration fee of £5.40 (inc VAT) will be deducted. If a meeting is abandoned, unless otherwise stated in the race meeting conditions in the Planner, the original entry fees will be refunded to the owner, minus this administration fee. If a horse is found to be not qualified, it will be removed from the relevant race, but the entry fee will be retained by the PPRC to cover the relevant administration costs.

Whilst the majority of entries are made online, it is possible to enter over the phone at PPRC 01933 440077, where a member of the team will take your entry process the transaction for £7.00 (inc VAT).

In the event of a meeting being rescheduled, where the new date is more than sixteen days after the original fixture, all entries made before the original closing date shall be voided, original entry monies refunded to the owner and entries reopened.

GN03 Race Framing (includes non point-to-point races and schooling)

Point to Point Fixture List 2025-2026

Race Day

Every point-to-point fixture is unique, so you won't have the same experience at any two meetings.

If you are travelling your horse yourself or have the ‘authority to act’ on someone else’s behalf, don't forget the horse’s passport and to check the vaccinations are all in order well before running. The vaccination regulation is that horses must have been vaccinated within the past six months. Please check Regulations 35-36.

If travelling separately, once you arrive at the course you may wish to find your keeper and horse and make sure everything is OK, walk the course to check the going and confirm that your rider has arrived, is happy and has walked the course themselves.

Rider. It is better to confirm who is going to ride your horse before race day. A Riders directory will be available from the start of the season. However, willing volunteers can normally be found on the day if necessary.

Declarations. To run an entered horse, a declaration form (see below) should be completed before arrival on the course, and then handed in at least 60 minutes before the race. To complete the declaration form, you need to know the name of the race, name of the horse, name of the rider, any applicable Club membership details, and additional items the horse is carrying such as tongue ties, blinkers, cheekpieces etc. You also need to make sure you declare the correct weight and colours, and confirm any allowances or penalties that the horse should be carrying. The racecard will list the penalties/allowances for the horse, but it is your responsibility to check these are correct. The racecard does not state any allowances or penalties the rider may have.

After that, you need to get ready for your race. Whoever is in charge of saddling the horse will need to ensure that the horse is carrying the correct weight. Horses are due in the paddock at least 15 minutes before the race, so make sure you are there to watch your horse parade and meet your keeper and rider to talk tactics. Then it's time to watch the race – good luck!

Following (or even before) a race, your horse may be selected for sampling by the BHA for prohibited substances. The Veterinary Officer and Equine and Welfare Integrity Officer will make themselves known to you and they will take you or your keeper through the procedure for taking a blood sample from the horse.

DS07 Declaration to Run Form Word (type details)

DS07 Declaration to Run Form PDF (enter details by hand)