Provision of social health-care in the West Midlands could be revolutionised under a ground-breaking scheme where troubled youngsters and people with mental and physical difficulties are found work placements on farms.
While The National Care Farming Initiative is in its infancy, care farms have been tested in the UK for several years with extremely positive feedback from both farmers and those seeking help.
But only now is the scheme being properly managed with a definitive structure and the West Midlands is at the heart of this new drive with agricultural centres across Shropshire, Worcestershire and Herefordshire trialing the scheme.
Should the project in the region prove successful by aiding personal development and eradicating nuisance behaviour, it could be rolled out to the rest of the UK.
Jon Dover, policy manager at Care Farming West Midlands (CFWM), said: “We are the first regional body to spread the practice and hope others will follow.
“It’s already a proven concept in the Netherlands where they have got about 1,000 care farms for a population of 15 million people.
“It’s very integrated with the farming and it’s very real.
“The farms are open to people with mental health issues, learning difficulties, those who have had problems with substance misuse and youngsters expelled from school.
“The feedback from care farms in the Netherlands and those already up and running in the UK is that it seems to have an impact on their wellbeing and can stop them from being recycled through the system.
“They connect with something and really take to it.”
So far there are 16 care farms in the West Midlands. Not all are yet operational, but they will offer a mixture of packages of support and work opportunities.
Each farm has completed a Countryside Educational Visits Accreditation Scheme to ensure they are legally allowed to participate.
Will Tooby, from New House Farm, in Worcestershire, will begin to take on helpers in September.
He said: “Care farming has potential benefits to society in different ways. Working with plants and animals can be very therapeutic. We are focused on people recovering from mental health issues and those with learning difficulties. It’s all about getting people on to their feet.
“It seems like such worthwhile work that I could not resist getting involved.”
Advantage West Midlands has given £414,000 to the CFWM project, which will deliver another four care farms by April 2010 and a further eight by April 2011.
