Philippe Karl's School of Légèreté UK

Home
United Kingdom
Taunton
Philippe Karl's School of Légèreté UK

Philippe Karl created the School of Légèreté (lightness) to share his respectful and effective me Karl in person.

Author, trainer and classical master, Philippe Karl is a Frenchman with a mission. He wants to change the horse world for the better by sharing his lifetime of experience - which includes 13 years as an Ecuyer of the prestigious Cadre Noir de Saumur. An outspoken critic of forceful riding, Philippe Karl is the author of several books and DVDs which present classical and horse-friendly solutions to the common problems and challenges encountered when schooling horses. The School of Légèreté offers a training course for riding instructors, consisting of a series of ten 4-day clinics held over a 3-year period. Candidates who wish to ride on the course must already be established riding instructors with significant experience. They may become Licenced Instructors of the School only after completing this course and achieving success in a series of rigorous practical and theoretical exams conducted by M. This course is also open to spectators who are willing to commit to following all 10 clinics. They will receive a corresponding certificate after completing the programme. After completing the initial 3-year course, the instructors can continue their education with Monsieur Karl, before and after gaining their licence, in Advanced clinics which are held 3 times each year. The Advanced clinics are also open to spectators who can attend for as little as one day.

15/09/2026

Last but not least, here is Catherine Marshall’s rider bio: my path to Légèreté.

My riding career started very early, having been blessed with a horsey mum and life on a farm.

As a child I was a member of our brilliant local Pony Club, and took part in their showjumping and eventing competitions, then when I was maybe thirteen I outgrew the little black Welsh jumping pony given to me on loan and took on a beautiful Welsh D x Arab 14.2hh.

He had a history of laminitis, wasn’t allowed to jump, and this is really how I discovered dressage. His paces were very eye catching and he had been well schooled by his owners. This was a whole new world of finesse for me, and set me firmly on the dressage route.

I went to university, during which time Mum was doing a bit of breeding, so although I didn’t have a horse of my own, there was always one for me to ride. I suppose this was my first experience working with young horses, which has remained my passion ever since.

After a short spell on the wards as a nurse, I left the NHS to pursue my dream of becoming a horse trainer.
I started a business importing young horses from the Netherlands to bring on and sell, and I was competing in dressage with a beautiful chestnut called Delphi.

Looking back the dissonance started bothering me from quite early on- I would look at a graphic on a horse lorry for example, and think “how will I ever get my horse to look like that when all I am doing is curling the neck up?”

My horses were frequently lame, and showing signs of not wanting to be worked in the arena. How frustrating! I had big dreams of being a great horsewoman, but all the while my horses were subtly telling me otherwise.

I started to study natural horsemanship, which was revolationary to me at the time. Now I could connect to the horses on a different level, one which made more sense to them (and to me). How though, was I to marry these new found groundwork skills with producing magnificent works of art under saddle?

To cut a long story short, there was a lot of experimentation, but eventually I was shown a DVD of Philippe Karl, and was given his book to read.
It was as if someone had turned on the light. All of the questions swirling around in my head were answered in Philippe’s usual succinct manner in that one book.

Becky Holden was teaching in Scotland at that time. She was teaching according to what she knew of Légèreté then, and it just felt better. Philippe’s first UK instructor course began in Daventry in 2010, and being a rider on that course changed everything. Suddenly I was able to open horses up instead of closing them down all the time.

I still have a deep gratitude for everything he has offered me, my horses and my pupils.

To see me in action teaching the foundation instructor group on 24-27 September you can book tickets here: https://legerete.co.uk/index.php/product/book-a-spectator-place-foundation/

07/09/2026

▪️If you look back at our old photo albums, you’ll find a whole mix of equestrian past lives—from traditional dressage to showjumping and everything in between!
▪️We didn’t all start out in the French classical world, but we all ended up here for a reason. Ahead of our Philippe Karl Foundation Instructor Course this September 24thto27th, my fellow coaches and I have been stepping out from behind the arena mirrors to reintroduce ourselves.
▪️Over the past few weeks we have been sharing our personal 'aha!' moments, the conventional habits we had to unlearn, and exactly why we fell in love with the École de Légèreté.
▪️My turn...

▪️I have a lifetime of competitive experience as a show jumping rider, trainer, and producer for clients, i have always been dedicated to reaching the highest standards of horsemanship. However, having seen the conventional training methods used in the competitive circuit over many years, sparked a pivotal turning point for me. Questioning the ethics and long-term impact of coercive techniques, I embarked on a personal mission to discover clearer, more empathy based and ethically minded tools to elevate my skills as a trainer.
This search for biomechanically sound training led first to the evidence-based principles of Andrew McLean, and ultimately to the French classical wisdom of Philippe Karl’s École de Légèreté.
Now three years into the rigorous Teacher Training Course under Master Teacher Catherine Marshall and about to attend my 10th clinic, I have successfully transitioned my extensive competitive background into a teaching philosophy rooted entirely in absolute respect for the horse. Armed with an effective, gadget-free training scale that prioritizes lightness and balance, I am preparing for two upcoming exams to become a fully licensed Ecole de Légèreté teacher.
This has by no means been an easy transition, however, as I pretty much lost all of my clients.and my business. It's a long and intensive process, demanding 101% at all times. Plus very expensive. The pressure to present the same horse to every clinic over at least 3 years is pretty much an impossible task. I've even had to get a 'proper job' to manage life stuff. But I ain't no quitter, and I am totally invested in this incredible school. Boom.
Just to add I will be showjumping again in a few years, with my lovely 3yo, Minnie which is very exciting.

The first picture shows Sidney. A horse owned by long term sponsors at the time. This is from a write up in the H and H after winning a 4yo championship. There is nothing about this I like. I don't need to explain why. Pretty obvious.

The second picture is at one of the recent clinics . Visually a different level.

Spectator tickets for the foundation course can be purchased here:

https://legerete.co.uk/index.php/product/book-a-spectator-place-foundation/

31/08/2026

Applications close for the 2027 South West Légèreté Foundation Instructor Course with Catherine Marshall at the end of September.

The course will take place at Ayton PRE in North Tawton, Devon on the following dates:

8-10 Feb
31 May-2June
27-29 Sept

If you would like to apply, you can find out how here:

https://www.google.com/goto?url=CAESjwEB6zswFbEoQiEVcu2RWUBKP-VEVnTvZg4L5eYV4b8dea7Dhv72FWzm77w8965fP9BvrRoRuzR07uw2o_3dCePSARvf3IPB0OMb6AbGd3pAiRIS7IugV5o4MYFKIYUQmGptCW_5dmlSzEPmF78RiJhNl4r55NOZ-Gqi6_ruznKBPaAEDP3oXKADW4aH3VfW8w

28/08/2026

Here's Annas Journey to Légèreté.
▪️Do you ever look back at your life and wonder, what happened to bring me to this point?
Looking back now, I realise that, in ways I couldn't see at the time, all the different rivers of my life with horses were gradually bringing me towards this school of training. I just didn't know it yet.
I have probably tried and failed, and made a million training mistakes, over the course of my career. I suspect that many people who eventually find Légèreté are in a similar boat: gadgets and bits galore, and poor horses caught in the middle of the latest fad and fashion.
As I learnt more about horses, I became increasingly aware of how often I had got things wrong. My journey to the other side took me so far down the rabbit hole of guilt that, at one stage, I seriously considered never riding again.
But something always brought me back to that inner calling: the desire to ride a horse with understanding and harmony.
The more I learnt, the more I felt I had failed my horses on so many levels. But that realisation became the beginning of a lifelong journey to do better. If I was going to ride horses, I needed to find a way to do it by helping them become stronger, rather than weaker.
Studying equine behaviour and learning theory changed the way I saw horses forever. I stopped seeing the horse simply as an animal I loved and trained and started looking at the whole horse …. their environment, social life, movement, emotional state and training.
I became convinced that we can't separate environment from training. Get one right but the other wrong, and the horse can still struggle. Get both right, and horses can truly thrive.
But there was still a big missing piece for me in my day to day life with horses- the ridden training.
I've never really been interested in simply happy hacking - although I love a good hack! I've always loved developing horses to become increasingly athletic. What I struggled with in more traditional methods was maintaining their interest, understanding and cooperation as the work became more demanding.
Then I found Légèreté.
Suddenly, the behaviour and learning theory I'd studied years earlier could flow directly into ridden training. It was systematic, logical and clear for the horse to understand. And despite not being heavily rooted in treat-based positive reinforcement, I found my horses developing understanding and harmony faster than with many other approaches I'd tried.
Looking back, those separate rivers… environment, behaviour, learning theory and my love of classical training - were always going to meet somewhere.
For me, they met in the École de Légèreté.

🐴 Come and watch us at the École de Légèreté Foundation Instructor Course, 24th–27th September.
Come and see where your own journey might start

For early bird discount book before 3rd Sept. earlybirdseptfou26

https://legerete.co.uk/index.php/product/book-a-spectator-place-foundation/

24/08/2026

▪️As part of our Foundation Instructor Group, we have to conquer four rigorous exams to earn our very first license.
The last couple of weeks we've talked about the Theory Exam and the Lunging/Inhand Exam of which at our Foundation Instructor Clinic on September 24th to 27th there will be two of these exams taking place. There will also be pedagogy exams taking place.
▪️What does an École de Légèreté instructor have to do in their pedagogy exam?

▪️Pedagogy Exam;

▪️The Pedagogy Exam is one of the four exams that student teaches have to pass to become a licenced teacher. Although all student teachers are already experienced trainers in their own right, they have to show they can teach a Légèreté lesson.
▪️All students get at least two pedagogy practices, it can be daunting teaching a new method in front of fellow students, spectators and the Master Teacher but the practices really prepare the student for the exam. It is a great chance to get constructive feed back and really helps prepare for the exam, by the time students take the exam they have already been immersed in the Légèreté system for several years and hopefully this method becomes second nature.
▪️The exam format:
▪️Pedagogy - learning how to teach the application of the principles of the school in the most effective way to a range of horse and rider combination. Clinic spectators will get to witness student instructors delivering "first Légèreté lessons"' to a variety of horse and rider combinations during the 2nd and 3rd years of the clinics.
▪️Structure of the 1-Hour Assessment Lesson.
▪️A 1-hour format assessment lesson requires precise time management to balance evaluation, personal riding, and coaching.
1. Introduction and History (5 Minutes)
• Interview the rider: Ask for the horse's age and medical background. • Identify issues: Note any current behavioural or physical problems. • Set goals: Clarify what the rider wants to achieve during the session.
2. Student Observation (10 Minutes) . Watch the combination: Observe the student riding at various paces. • Assess mechanics: Evaluate the horse's movement and the rider's position,
3. Trainer Evaluation (15 Minutes • Start on the ground: Perform brief flexions to check responsiveness. • Ride if safe: Mount the horse to feel its movement firsthand. • Narrate the process: Explain your actions and feelings aloud to the client if possible • In-hand: Is acceptable if this is better for the horse and rider.
4. Practical Coaching (30 Minutes • Address core issues: Teach unmounted flexions followed by ridden exercises • Adapt to needs: Utilize groundwork exclusively if it is safer or more appropriate.
5. Group Debrief (Post-Lesson) • Receive feedback: Listen to observations from fellow students and the Master Teacher. • Share insights: Provide kind, constructive, and actionable comments regarding the session.

We are an approved BHS CPD event.

To book your spectator space please use discount code earlybirdseptfou26

https://legerete.co.uk/index.php/product/book-a-spectator-place-foundation/

23/08/2026

An open rider space has become available on the Foundation course in Daventry 24-27 September.
Please contact Sarah Holland-Villa if you are interested.

Thankyou

21/08/2026

The first Légèreté instructor course to take place in Scotland is not far away!

Auditor and spectator places are available but will be limited.

If you would like to audit, you must attend 9 out of the 10 clinics which make up the 3 year course. Following this you will receive an auditor certificate. Cost is £120 per clinic.

Spectator tickets are available for each clinic, at a cost of £120 for 3 days. Spectators may come to as many or few courses as they like.

What to expect: Each day consists of 5 individual lessons with master teacher Catherine Marshall, followed by a theory lecture or pedagogical sessions. As the course progresses, students will undertake theory exams, pedagogy exams and a ridden presentation in front of spectators.

Whitesands is very accessible from north and south, sitting less than a mile off the A1. Dunbar, just over a mile away from the yard, is a beautiful coastal town, and hosts plenty of hotels, B and Bs and cafes/ restaurants.

Whitesands is an outdoor venue but has a covered viewing area which we can keep warm with heaters and heated blankets. There is an indoor classroom area with tea and coffee but please bring your lunch with you.

If you would like to join us as a spectator/auditor you are very welcome, please contact Catherine directly at [email protected]

20/08/2026

▪️As part of our Foundation Instructor Group, we have to conquer four rigorous exams to earn our very first license.
▪️Last week we talked about the Theory Exam and this week we want to tell you about the Lunging/Inhand Exam of which at our Foundation Instructor Clinic on September 24th to 27th there will be two of these exams taking place. Here goes;
▪️What does an École de Légèreté instructor have to do in their Lunging & In-Hand exam?

One of the principles of the École de Légèreté is that we prepare the horse progressively: understanding before difficulty, and groundwork before adding the weight and influence of the rider.

That’s why one part of the instructor examination is performed entirely from the ground, with a horse the instructor has trained themselves; accompanied by music and presented live to their Master Instructor and an audience.

Lunging

The instructor has to show the horse balanced in all three gaits, maintaining an elastic dialogue through the lunge line while working through:

• Straight lines
• Squares
• Large circles and small voltes
• Halt
• Rein back (desirable)

It’s not simply exercising a horse on a circle. The aim is to show that they can influence direction, bend and gait while maintaining balance.

Flexions in halt

Next, the instructor demonstrate that the horse understands the different actions of the bit:

• Mobilising the jaw and releasing tension
• Raising the base of the neck and engaging the thoracic sling
• Lateral flexion without brace
• “Chewing the reins” into neck extension

These become the toolkit in movement and eventually under saddle: lengthen when the horse contracts, rebalance when they fall onto the forehand, and influence bend and weight distribution without force.

In-hand

Finally comes a prescribed series of exercises in movement, including:

• Straight and “in hand”
• Fléchi-droit
• Neck extension
• Turns in different bends
• Shoulder-in on a volte
• Shoulder-in on a straight line
• Walk–trot–halt–rein back–trot transitions

Throughout, the horse must show symmetry, balance and a consistent in-hand posture: the base of the neck raised, poll lightly flexed, jaw mobile, nose at or slightly in front of the vertical and good length through the neck.

The horse should telescope the neck towards the bit, rather than simply having their head positioned into an outline.

The exam brings together many of the fundamental principles of the School: understanding before demanding obedience, balance before movement, preparation before difficulty, and progressively educating the horse to respond to increasingly subtle aids.

For spectators, it’s a rare opportunity to see these principles demonstrated in practice and to take home learnings to their own horses.

17/08/2026

▪️Meet the Teachers of our September 24th to 27th Philippe Karls Foundation Instructor Course!

▪️Every instructor has a past life in the conventional horse world. In this series, we reveal what sparked our shift to the French classical tradition and why we are dedicated to passing this knowledge on to you. Here's Rosie talking about her journey so far. ▪️My Ecole de Légèreté journey began in a similar way to many others - with a horse who told me clearly that riding with a holding hand and a pushing leg didn’t work for either her body or her mind.

I spent the first 20 years of my equestrian journey tinkering with starting young horses, working with horses with behavioural problems and, in my free time with my own horses, flinging myself over the biggest showjumps I dared.

Then I had my first child, did an about-turn towards self-preservation and decided I was going to “do dressage”. Sadly, my bank balance only stretched to a bargain-basement project horse who certainly didn’t have natural balance. Enter Daisy, stage right.

Still, it’s the investment in training that really counts, isn’t it?

So I invested in the best dressage training I could, with some well-reputed competition riders. They all told me to do a similar thing: keep my hands low, keep my leg on and use my seat.

Daisy told me this pressure was unbearable. She FOUGHT and fought the contact. We eventually reached a compromise where she would carry her head behind the vertical on an almost non-existent contact, but if she was challenged or I actually needed to use my reins, the resistance would return.

I was told “just keep the pressure on until she submits”; “it will be normal for her to rear to escape the pressure until she gives in”; and, by another dressage rider, “horses communicate via punishment.”

I stopped “doing dressage”.

Then one day I dug out an old book I had on the shelf called The Twisted Truths of Modern Dressage. It said that when you lift the bit in the corners of the mouth, the horse should mobilise the jaw, giving a feeling of softness.

The next day I stood in front of Daisy and picked up the bit. I was met with concrete heaviness.

Eureka! This was the start of unpicking the brace and tension that I had so far failed to unravel.

This puzzle piece of an educated, relaxed mouth was clearly so fundamental that I just couldn’t believe I’d never heard the concept mentioned in over 20 years of training.

There started my journey to not only train my horses differently, but to share this learning with others so fewer people face that same exasperated realisation in mid-life:

“WHY has nobody told me about this before??”

Make the most of our early bird offer by booking your spectator space before 3 rd September

https://legerete.co.uk/index.php/product/book-a-spectator-place/

Address

Taunton

Website

http://www.legerete.co.uk/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Philippe Karl's School of Légèreté UK posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Philippe Karl's School of Légèreté UK:

Want your business to be the top-listed Gym/sports Facility in Taunton?