What is a social licence to operate?
Social licence is increasingly important in horse sport and leisure – find out why.
Social licence is increasingly important in horse sport and leisure – find out why.
- Social licence is a way to describe public acceptance of an activity. When an activity has society’s approval or acceptance, it is said to have a ‘social licence to operate.’
- The social licence of horse sport is being challenged – as questions are increasingly being raised about the involvement of horses in sport due to concerns about their welfare and safety.
- Several factors lie behind this:
- Societies in Britain and globally are less familiar with horses as utility animals and increasingly see them as either pets or animals that should be left in the wild.
- Public opinion on the use of animals for entertainment is changing and society is questioning the morals of involving horses in sport, including the risks this involves, and whether they are given a good life.
- Research and science have improved understanding of what horses need to have good welfare, calling some traditional horse management and training practices into question. Horse sport is also aware of more ways to reduce avoidable risk to horses and riders in sport.
- Social media and the popularity of sharing video and images can whip up and shape public sentiment against horse sport when real or perceived lapses in welfare and safety arise.
- Independent public opinion research commissioned by the charity and conducted in the UK annually by YouGov since 2022 revealed that 40% of the general public would only continue to support the use of horses in sport if their welfare was improved, while 20% would not support their use in any circumstances.
- Ensuring the welfare of horses is truly put first and demonstrating the importance of their well-being are key to maintaining equestrianism’s social licence to operate.
