Redevelopment of Shores Hey Farm for HAPPA

Neil Taylor Contractors led a comprehensive redevelopment of the Shores Hey Farm facilities for HAPPA, the Horses and Ponies Protection Association - delivering a wide-ranging set of improvements to support both operational needs and visitor experience. 

As a long-established charity dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation, and rehoming of equines, HAPPA has been based at this Burnley site since 1984. The project represented a significant step forward for the charity, enhancing its operational capacity and creating a more welcoming, accessible environment for the public.

Our involvement as Principal Contractors covered the full redevelopment of the site to support HAPPA’s growing community and welfare ambitions. At the heart of the work was the construction of a new two-storey conference and education block, designed to support the charity’s outreach work with schools, volunteers, and visiting professionals. New administrative offices were built alongside, streamlining the charity’s daily operations and providing a modern, efficient workspace for the dedicated HAPPA team.

Crucially, we expanded the site’s capacity to care for horses and ponies in need. We constructed new stables and a purpose-designed isolation block, allowing for improved intake procedures and safeguarding the health of animals during their initial period on site. A new riding arena was also built to support rehabilitation and training programmes – essential to preparing horses for rehoming and providing structured care routines.

The redevelopment also improved the experience for the thousands of visitors who now pass through Shores Hey Farm each year. We created a new access road and extended the parking facilities to accommodate more guests safely and comfortably. A family-friendly children’s play area was introduced, and a new café-restaurant added a social and welcoming space to the site, encouraging longer visits and additional income for the charity.

HAPPA has continued to build on these foundations, recently upgrading visitor pathways to ensure accessibility for wheelchair users and pushchairs, and developing a new equine welfare museum celebrating the organisation’s legacy. These improvements reflect HAPPA’s ambition not just to care for horses, but to educate the public and provide a space where people of all ages and backgrounds can connect with the charity’s mission.

Working on this project gave us the opportunity to apply our experience in complex, multi-purpose developments. It was essential to balance the practical needs of a busy working yard with the requirements of a public-facing visitor attraction. Throughout the build, we worked closely with the HAPPA team to maintain high safety standards and minimise disruption – ensuring that day-to-day care and charity operations could continue uninterrupted.

The transformation of Shores Hey Farm marks a major milestone for HAPPA. It’s a space that now better reflects the scale and professionalism of their work, offering improved welfare for horses and a more inclusive experience for visitors and volunteers. We’re proud to have helped deliver a facility that will support the charity’s growth and impact for many years to come.