Small is beautiful is the maxim by which Anna Newton-Smith runs her racing stable at Jevington near Polegate.

Just 15 horses are in training in a yard with only 18 boxes and there is no prospect of further stables being built.

"I'm very much a hands-on trainer," says Anna. "I don't have a head lad so I do all the feeding and every horse gets individual attention from me.

"I wouldn't want more horses than I have already."

Anna, 47, has had a training licence for six years and if her total of 25 winners seems slight it is significant that each year she has trained more winners than the year before.

"Last season I had nine winners and 12 placed horses from around 80 runners," she said.

"And I would hope to improve on that this time."

In betting terms Anna's winners showed a profit of £33 to a £1 level stake on all her runners and, by comparison, in the current season only six of the top 20 jumping trainers are showing any sort of profit on the same basis.

Anna is almost exclusively a jumping trainer. "I might run one or two on the flat to help get them ready, but most of my horses will come on for a run," she says.

"I much prefer jumping compared with the flat scene, it is more horse-orientated and the atmosphere is quite different, much nicer."

Unusually these days, Anna does not have an all-weather gallop at Jevington. "The cost of installing even a woodchip gallop is prohibitive." she says.

"I'm very lucky that here on the South Downs the drainage is so good that I can use my six furlong, uphill turf gallop at more or less any time of the year."

For steady conditioning work, there are miles of rides on the Downs and through the woods.

"And Lingfield is only an hour away in the lorry if the horses need a change of scenery or need to work over a longer distance.

"The new surface there is perfect with no kick-back and very easy on the horses' legs."

Anna's horses are bedded on shavings.

"I know exactly what they're eating, unlike horses bedded on wheat or oat straw," she added.

Amateur rider Sergio Gordon-Watson is into his third season as assistant trainer at Home Farm Barn. A winning point-to-point rider, Sergio has leased one of the stable veterans, Boring Goring, to ride himself during the season.

The horse is actually owned by George Goring who, with his brother Richard, runs the Goring Hotel in London. This discreet watering hole was a favourite of the late Queen Mother who always hosted her annual luncheon there for the Injured Jockeys' Fund Committee.

The Goring brothers have long been successful competitors on the Team Chase scene and it was through this popular sport that Anna met George.

"He encourage me to set up as a trainer and sponsored the yard for a couple of years when I was finding my feet," she says.

Other long-time owners are John and Shirley Grist from Tunbridge Wells. The Grists own Little Bud and were delighted with this eight-year-old mare's third place at Kempton on Wednesday.

"They also have Hardy Bree who has had problems but will be back with me next year and Raleagh Native, a nine-year-old, who will soon be running over fences."

Julian Smith's Follow The Trend is another potential chaser and Copper Shell has moved recently from Gary Moore's yard to Jevington.

"Copper Shell is owned by the Brighton Racing Club who felt that a change of scenery would be beneficial," says Anna.

"He will have one run over hurdles before resuming his chasing career."

Perhaps the most interesting newcomer is Sekwana, a three-year-old filly just arrived from Poland.

"She was third in the Polish Oaks which is not quite the same as the Epsom Oaks, but a top race all the same," Anna said.

"Sekwana has won three races and been unplaced only once. I am giving her time to settle down because it was a gruelling journey by road from Poland."

Sekwana has been in England for a fortnight now and is doing walking exercise through the woods for the moment.

"She seems quite mature and sensible and full of character and when I get to know her I will work out a plan of campaign."

Sekwana will begin schooling over hurdles in December, probably ridden by stable jockey Colin Bolger or Sergio, who do most of the schooling over hurdles and fences.

Happy horses with happy owners are Anna's objectives. She starts work on her horses in mid-summer and reckons to take three months before she has a runner.

"And even then most of them will improve because I don't like to begin with all guns blazing and have nothing left by March or April," she said.

Anna has just moved into her new home, a bull-pen converted into a tiny cottage next door to the yard. She reckons to ride out three lots herself every day, her only full-time staff apart from her assistant being Bolger and Gemma Towner.

The winners will come, that's for sure, and one for every horse in the yard would be a satisfactory total for this hard-working trainer.