Welcome to Castle Farm Livery & Cross Country LTD
Castle Farm is a family run equestrian centre on a 56 acre farm, situated on the edge of the beautiful Cotswolds. Established in 1995 in the village of Wickwar, South Gloucestershire, Castle Farm offers easy access from the M4 & M5 whilst enjoying beautiful countryside all around us. Castle Farm Livery and XC became a limited company in 2025.
Castle Farm Livery & Cross Country was established in 1995 and became a LTD company in 2025, our friendly establishment is more than a livery yard and cross country course, rather, it’s a way of life. With our passion for horses and genuine interest in our clients, we work together as a family, and we work with our clients as a team. Here at Castle Farm Livery & Cross Country LTD we offer all the elements that you could wish for to enjoy your horses; whether you’re a novice or experienced rider, Castle Farm Livery & Cross Country LTD offers a friendly and welcoming ‘horsey’ place to be.
Yard Owner
Anna Howes
I am Anna Howes, I decided to set up my own livery yard in 1995 having always struggled as a horse owner to find a professional, friendly yard which was reasonably priced. I am a farmer’s daughter who has owned and ridden horses since 1986. Early in my career I found a passion for teaching and have been coaching riders since 1989. During my employment over the years I have worked with Dressage horses, Race horses, Eventers, Hunters, Driving horses, Kids ponies and even tried my hand at Vaulting! Other than my equine skills, I have good people skills and have spent 10 years as a part time senior manager for an international retail company.
My main aim with any horse or rider, is to get the best results in the most positive way, I enjoy working with anyone who has a desire to improve, no matter what their ability.
It had always been my dream to run my own yard and pass on my equine knowledge and experiences for the benefit of others. I qualified as a BHSAI in 1991 and offer sympathetic and structured riding tuition for all ages and abilities. Additionally, I am a qualified NVQ tutor and assessor; working with Bridgewater College. Castle Farm Livery & Cross Country is able to offer the NPTC Work- Based Diploma in Horse Care and Riding Levels 1, 2 and 3.
Our Team
Yard manager: Molly Parker Welch
Molly has been successfully managing Castle Farm since May 2024. Introducing new avenues to the livery services at Castle Farm, as well as boosting coaching and training. Molly is a keen coach and rider with plenty of experience with young and challenging horses. Having spent a lot of time backing and breaking showjumping horses. In 2022 she was lucky to groom for her favorite home ride Archie in the HOYS bronze league final.
She has two degrees within the equine and coaching sector; an BSc in racehorse performance and rehabilitation in 2020 and then went on to gain an MSc in performance analysis in 2023, so enjoys the process of coaching riders to follow their goals with training and reflective progression. She has presented the MSc dissertation at the Hartpury Alltech Conference where it gained a prize for the best poster presentation. Molly is also currently working through her BHS stages to become an accredited professional coach gaining stage 2 complete at the end of 2024. Outside of this Molly is a Triathlete and is very focused on goal setting, and long term progression within sport whether that be competitive or for leisure.
Saturday Groom- Maya Fraser
Maya joined the team in January 2025, having worked supporting our team on an ad-hoc basis. Maya works a Saturday at Castle Farm, and loans Missy and enjoys getting involved with all of the events at Castle Farm with her. She has been riding since she was 4 years old and has had a variety of horses on loan, the passion for caring for them and riding grew and this has put her in good stead for her position at Castle Farm for her to nurture the skills professionally.