A community horse riding stables in Teddington has raised a staggering amount of money to secure its future.

Yesterday (Feb 18), Park Lane Stables announced it had raised the £1 million won needed to ensure future generations of riders.

In January it was announced that the riding school, which specialises in lessons for people with disabilities, would close unless it could buy the premises near Bushy Park.

An “all-or-nothing” Crowdfunder was launched, with Feb 24 the deadline to raise the funds.

This was alongside efforts undertaken by the community, including local artists who donated pony portraits.

But it was coverage on Good Morning Britain and BBC Breakfast last week, as well as celebrity supporters, which caused the total to skyrocket.

More than £500,000 was raised in the past 24 hours alone, and the numbers keep escalating.

Owner, Natalie O’Rourke, expressed her gratitude in an update on the stables’ fundraising page yesterday (Feb 18) saying, “We did it!”

“Thank you so much for all of your support so far. The big donations have been fantastic and lifted our spirits every time, but to those who pledged their pocket money, and all the people who gave £5 and £10 and said ‘sorry I can’t give more’, we and our staff and RDA riders would like to say a huge thank you. Between us we made it happen!

We still welcome any extra support, we're a charity with ongoing costs and every little really does help. As you can imagine, the upkeep of 23 horses is no mean feat, with food, vet bills and general running costs!

With additional funds we would be able to secure our future existence. We would also be able to purchase land for our horses to graze and build our own secure arena that could be used for RDA riding and carriage driving sessions for our participants.”