New faces (and feathers) on the farm

Our animals have had a lovely summer and have been very well looked after by the team.

Sadly, we had to say goodbye to our much-loved bunny, Smudge, who passed away over the summer. Smudge was a special part of life at Orchard and will be greatly missed by everyone at the farm.

We’re hoping to welcome a new fluffy bunny soon. But there’s one important job we’re saving for when everyone returns: choosing a name! We’d love our young people to help us find the perfect one for our newest arrival.

There have been a few other changes too. Our two boy cows have moved on to a new farm, where they’ll continue to be well cared for, and our white cockerels have also found new homes.

But we have some new arrivals to introduce! Two terrapins have joined us in the Reptile Bus, alongside 20 new chickens. We’re sure it won’t take long for them to become familiar faces around the farm.

More space to Explore, Engage and Empower

It hasn’t just been our animals keeping us busy. We’ve also made a number of improvements to our buildings and learning spaces, giving our young people more room to Explore, Engage and Empower.

We now have two new office buildings for our Pastoral Team, providing dedicated spaces for our Pastoral Lead, SENCo and Occupational Therapist. These new spaces will help the team continue to provide individual support in an environment that feels calm and welcoming.

Our woodwork and engineering rooms have also been adapted, creating more space for young people to get hands-on, experiment with ideas, solve problems and make things of their own.

Creating calmer spaces for learning

Changes are also underway in our classroom areas.

The wall between the old kitchen and the old Learning Hub is being filled in to create two separate classrooms. Having more dedicated learning spaces will help us create calmer, more focused environments where young people can feel comfortable and engaged in their work.

Our new kitchen has had an update too, with additional space being created for another cooker. This means more opportunities for young people to get involved in cooking and develop practical, independent living skills.

Ready for another year at Orchard

All of these changes have been made with our young people in mind – creating more space to learn, make, explore, develop new skills and simply enjoy being at the farm.

We’ve included some photographs so you can have a first look at what’s been happening over the summer, but we’re even more excited for everyone to see the changes for themselves.

We hope you’ve all had a wonderful summer. We can’t wait to welcome everyone back to Orchard Therapeutic Farmfor another year of learning, growing and exploring together.

And, of course, we have one very important decision waiting for you when you return…

What should we call our new bunny?