Autumn school visits
September 3, 2024
With the new school year beginning, what opportunities are there to get out and about on the farm?
What does September mean to you? I suppose that would depend on who or what you are. To a countryside forager, it means elder berries, rosehips and chestnuts; to a juvenile goldfinch, it means their first winter plumage coming through, making them look a little scruffy around the edges; to a bat it means the time has come to begin putting on weight for hibernation; to a livestock farmer it means checking the grass and hay stocks for the forthcoming winter grazing; and to a child it means the beginning of the new school year.
Though the return to classrooms may feel like a distinct revocation of the freedoms the summer holidays offer, there are still opportunities to get out and about as autumn begins to creep onto the scene. Exploring the outdoors is a boost to children’s health, both mental and physical, and a wonderful way to learn about the landscape around them.
Outdoor learning, here on the farm, comes in many forms. Past school visits have studied dragonfly larvae while pond dipping, hunted minibeasts in the woods, learned to survive in the wild with bushcraft skills, visited the piglets enjoying their space in the paddock, listened to the cows chewing the cud, and even helped to improve our landscape while getting involved in tree planting. Every class is also launched into the world of organics and food miles, with our classic ‘Farm to Fork’ tour – a real foray into where food actually comes from, discovering the free-range and organic life of Fordhall’s livestock.
For many schools, access to educational visits can unfortunately be blocked by financial barriers. Thanks to funding, we at the farm are able to offer one free visit per class per year (subject to availability), and for Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin school groups who are visiting before March 2025, there is travel cost support available from the Shropshire Good Food Partnership too. To enquire about school visits, and what support funding is available to your educational group, please contact our Head of Youth Services, Rachel, on rachel.wallace@fordhallfarm.com
We hope we can welcome your group to the farm soon!
Francesca Lant, Marketing and Communications Officer
Find out more about Fordhall educational visits at www.fordhallfarm.com/education
