A farm walk organised by the Gloucestershire Green Party has proved
such a success that plans are afoot to organise more walks around farms.

Martin Whiteside pictured left in the dairy 

On Saturday 4th September Julia Currie, who owns Croft Farm in Ebley,  Stroud (i), led members of the public and Green Party members in a  guided walk around her own farm and the neighbouring Godsells farm.

Philip Booth, a Gloucestershire Green Party member who helped organise  the event said; "This walk was an excellent chance for us all to learn  more about the difficulties and opportunities that farmers face. We had  many lively discussions along the way about the dire state of British  farming, the huge difficulties faced by small farmers, EU policy, TB  and badgers, the power of supermarkets, the challenges of going organic  with so little support, rights of way and much more."


Farm educational project for Stroud schools inspires plan for more farm
walks for adults.

The visit included a fascinating trip around the dairy at the Godsells
and finished with everyone sitting on straw bails and eating the
Godsells cheese and other local products. Julia Currie then gave a
small talk about her exciting new educational project that plans to
link 9 local schools within walking distance to the farm. Some teachers
and children have already had successful visits; Maidenhill School was
due to go on 6th September.

Philip Booth said: "There was much enthusiasm on the farm walk for what
Julia is trying to do. This is a great opportunity for children to
connect with the land and have some understanding about where their
food comes from - a farm like this makes a brilliant 'outside
classroom'. But what we have learnt today shows that so many of us
adults, could also benefit with reconnecting with the land. Most of
those on the walk said it would be great if the walks were more widely
available."

Julia Currie is now planning further farm walks which could be tailored
to meet the needs of different groups.


Notes:

(i) The land is mainly Cotswolds grassland in an Area of Natural
Beauty. Farmed with minimal inputs for over 20 years, it is currently
grazed by young beef cattle and dairy livestock, and there is a horse
livery, and a traditional apple and Perry pear orchard. The farm is run
with sensitivity towards the environment, with carefully managed
hedgerows and many ancient trees. New hedgerows and trees have been
recently planted, nest boxes have been set up and the old orchard is
being restored with Gloucestershire and local fruit varieties. The farm
can be accessed by the public footpath network, including the Cotswold
Way, a National Trail, and the styles along the Way show the variety of
local building traditions, as does the fine Cotswold barn in the yard.

(ii) The owner, Julia Currie, is in the process of developing links to
the 9 schools that are within walking distance of the farm. The aim is
to provide an outdoor classroom for teaching staff, accessible all year
round, and with developed teaching and learning resources linked to the
National Curriculum. To date, and with the aid of the Stroud Education
Business Partnership, 2 workshops have been run for teachers to
introduce them to the wealth of learning opportunities. More are
planned. Already Maidenhill School has undertaken a walk that included
the farm, and on Monday 6th September, St Matthews Primary School will
spend the whole day there, investigating the natural diversity of the
farm through fun activities such as ‘mini-beast hunts’ in various
locations. The children will walk to the school and will have a packed
lunch in a barn.

Longer term, Julia plans to extend her ideas to other farms located
next to towns in Gloucestershire, offering a package of learning
resources to schools and help to farmers to set up the project. As
Julia says, ‘Just imagine if every school adjacent to a farm were to be
linked to that farm! Children’s learning would benefit, it would help
with their fitness and health, and they would learn about the
countryside and where their food comes from’.