Charity: Jamie's Farm

"We're really delighted with what's been created in the Pig Woods. Having a self-sufficient new space away from the main farm buildings where we can take visiting groups is a great development for us. It'll give us increased flexibility for working with different groups or individuals, including taking forward our trials of offering visits at weekends.

The sheltered firepit area will provide a wonderful focal point for group sessions, as well as the option of doing some open fire cooking for an al fresco dining experience! The wonderful treehouse has already proved a hit with visiting young people and will provide a great space for one-to-one meetings with our therapy coordinator." Jess Callen, Head of Farm

Introduction

The mental health crisis affecting children and young people on the back of the pandemic has led to an increasing demand for the intervention and support that Jamie’s Farm can provide. This prompted a review into how best expand the facilities and useability of Jamie’s farms. At Hill House Farm, Jamie’s Farm site at Box in Wiltshire, they sought to develop a small area of woodland to create a new self-sufficient space that could welcome visiting groups.

The Henry Sale Foundation made a grant towards this initiative in July 2022 – helping Jamie’s Farm to meet the costs of this exciting project which has boosted our capacity to welcome visitors both during the week and at weekends.

The Project Build

The completed project consists of a sheltered fire circle and firepit, a composting loo / urinal and sheltered outdoor food preparation area – including a double sink and cupboards – alongside handwashing facilities. Within the trees on the perimeter of the site there is now a treehouse with commanding views of the Box valley.

A broadleaf mix of tree saplings were planted around the edge of the cleared woods in the spring and included species such as oak, cheery, beech and crab apple. As these grow they will create structural diversity within the perimeter band of trees and help to enhance biodiversity. Although the planting was successful some browsing by deer has meant some saplings were lost and some additional planting alongside maintenance of the trees will be beneficial going forward.

First Group to Pig Woods

Jamie’s Farm have been able to take some of our visiting groups to the Pig Woods area. Activities have so far have also included visiting children assisting with straightening and weeding around the tree saplings, as well as creating woodchip pathways to support ongoing access. Some log chopping with young visitors has also already taken place with the beginnings of a wood stack taking shape.

The plans for this area include building kindling bins to store kindling and develop the log chopping facilities at this part of the Farm.

Future plans

The plans to further develop the Pig Woods include developing part of it as a sensory space. Within one specified area, this will provide opportunities for children to build sensory connections in their brains, challenge their spatial awareness skills and experience different tactile sensations.