Riding lessons by level: set places to match your horses

Create one service per level, open group lesson slots with one place per suitable horse for that level, and keep private lessons as a separate service with one place. Riders pick their level, then a lesson with a free place, and a full lesson simply disappears from your page. That way you never have more riders than horses, and a beginner never lands in a jumping lesson for confirmed riders.

Levels, places and prices are examples: use your own grid and your own level names. On Book, a service has a name, an optional description shown on your page, and a price. Each slot belongs to one service and has its own capacity, so a beginner lesson can take six riders while a jumping lesson takes five.

The number of places in a group lesson isn't only about the arena or your voice: it's about how many horses are suited to that level and free at that time. Set the capacity of each slot to that number. Each rider who books takes one place, and when the last place is booked, the lesson is hidden from your page. Your page doesn't show how many places are left, so riders see only lessons they can still join.

If a horse is off work, lower the capacity of the lessons it was meant for, or book the missing place yourself with a note such as "horse resting". If a rider already booked can't be matched to a horse, contact them to move to another lesson.

Riders decide which service to book from the name and description. Say what a rider should be able to do before joining, for example "walks, trots and canters on both reins independently", and what the lesson covers. Suggest that new riders book a discovery lesson or a private lesson first, so you can assess them before they join a group.

The booking form asks for first name, last name, email and phone, plus an optional note. For riding, the note is where you learn what you need to assign a horse:

You receive an email for each new booking with the note, so you can prepare the horse list before the lesson. The public form books one rider at a time: if two siblings ride in the same lesson, the parent makes two bookings.

A group lesson can come back at the same time each week. Create each lesson once and repeat it on the chosen weekdays until an end date, such as the end of term. Riders who come every week can book several weeks ahead, or you can book them yourself from your calendar; enter their email if you want them to receive the confirmation with its calendar file.

Private lessons need one place and the right horse. Open them in quieter hours, when the arena and a horse are free, and not at the same time as a group lesson you teach yourself. Book doesn't block overlaps between services, so plan your own timetable so you're never booked in two places at once.

If you ride outdoors, weather can cancel a lesson. Say in the description how you handle it: indoor arena, theory lesson, or rescheduling. Riders can't move their bookings online; when you cancel or reschedule from your bookings list, Book doesn't email them, so tell them yourself by phone, text or email.

Book costs €5/month, everything included: unlimited bookings and services, no commission, no contract. It doesn't handle payments, lesson cards or membership fees.