World Horse Welfare brings sector together on future of free-living and semi-feral ponies

World Horse Welfare brought together nearly 40 representatives from welfare charities, breed societies, commoners' associations, local authorities, land managers, enforcement agencies and veterinary organisations for the first Equine Common Ground Conference, held in September 2026 at the Glenda Spooner Farm Rescue and Rehoming Centre in Somerset. The gathering focused on the long-term welfare of free-living and semi-feral pony populations across major UK commons, including Exmoor, Bodmin Moor, the New Forest, and Gelligaer and Merthyr Common in south Wales — sites that together cover more than 120,000 acres and support over 5,000 ponies.

Attendees, who included Redwings Horse Sanctuary, the RSPCA and HorseWorld alongside World Horse Welfare, discussed the practical challenges of managing these populations: establishing clear ownership, maintaining effective identification systems, securing sustainable funding, and encouraging responsible breeding decisions among those who manage herds on common land. Malcolm Morley, World Horse Welfare's UK director, said welfare on these sites "depends on clear ownership, effective identification, strong governance and responsible population management."

For breeders and owners more broadly, the conference is a reminder that population management and traceability are not abstract concerns — they shape welfare outcomes wherever horses and ponies are bred, kept or allowed to roam. World Horse Welfare said it intends to use the conference as a starting point for continued collaboration between the organisations and authorities responsible for these landscapes.