The Farm

The Demeter House School Farm is a site on the outskirts of Caistor, where the upper school students visit for Animal Care and Forest School. The Farm itself consists of a grid of horse paddocks lined with dirt lanes, but it’s true beauty is found hidden behind an archway in the trees. Through this concealed entrance is a peaceful clearing with the pastures of various animals around it’s edge and a fishing pond at it’s centre.

On weekdays you can hear the trundling of the school bus as it trudges up the lane before rolling to a halt beside two curious Shetland ponies. Then, as if a team of (soon-to-be) expert handlers, the students step from the bus and into the routine of caring for the animals.When I accompanied a trip to the farm, I was able to watch as, with only the verbal directions of the teacher, the students were each able to complete their tasks about the farm – be it turning off the electrical fences, giving the animals their feed or helping the teacher to clean out the results of said feed.

Goats

 

 

 

 

 

 


Alongside the two ponies, t
he students also help to care for three young goats, affectionately named Mel, Michelle and Linda, a coop-full of chickens and two sultan hens, and a horse in one of the farm’s paddocks.

Once done with their respective chores, the students usually spend some time pole fishing with sweetcorn while waiting for the others – a relaxed pass time aside from the occasional mischievous duck.

The Lake

Away from the sometimes hustle and bustle of school life, The Farm provides students with a calm respite while managing to impart both practical knowledge and skills, as well as teaching them the responsibilities of caring for animals. The Farm has already come a long way since the first time I visited it, nearly a year before this post, and I, for one, can’t wait to see it as we progress into Spring and Summer.