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 Why not become a member of Bath City Farm? If you would like to receive a copy of our all singing, all dancing newsletter, in glorious colour and with pictures, please consider becoming a member of Bath City Farm. Membership only costs £10 a year (concessions available). Your membership fee helps to support our running costs, e.g. salaries, site work, newsletter and of course our animals. Community Play Rangers @ Bath City Farm The Community Play Rangers are James Beattie and Shiva Page. They both have a great deal of experience with working with children from 0 to 20 years of age. They also have a range of professional training in Play Work and Youth Work. The Play Rangers run 3 sessions a week after school from 3.30 to 6.30pm. The aim is to provide child led play activities for children, as well as engaging children and young people with open green spaces and nature. At the Farm this includes feeding, cleaning out and caring for all the animals. Another popular activity is cooking and we have already made Chocolate Crispy Cakes and Baked Apples, which were delicious!. Art activities are also very popular and we have made Willow Lanterns, Xmas Cards, painted pictures of the new pigs and lots of other creative activities. Team games and homemade skittles are also popular at the moment. In January we bought some head torches and used them with walkie-talkies to do night-time 'missions' which have been very popular. We plan to do some Forest School based activities such as den building, whittling and also some nature hunts. The children would also like to have campfires and toast marshmallows as well as other outdoor cookery. During February half term the team ran activities on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday which included gardening, mud sculptures, step building and other fun activities. Plans for this year include:
Site Work Hedge laying has been the main task for volunteers over the winter. With the weather being so mild this autumn, we have had to wait until late December for all the leaves to fall off before we could start. Lots of new volunteers have learnt the ancient skill of hedge laying and are really enjoying it. We are still looking for more volunteers to join the team so if you are looking for something interesting, worthwhile and muddy to do on a Monday, then give Helen a ring on 01225 481269. M.O.D team building day A team from the M.O.D. offices at Warminster Road came to Bath City Farm for a team building day in December. They all worked really hard to build a gravelled path to the goat pen. We are very grateful to them for their work and for raising £380 for the Farm. Mandy the sow moves on The pigs that arrived in November are settling in really well, with the piglets growing every day. Mandy, their enormous mother, has returned to Gloucester City Farm for her retirement. They have all been a great draw for visitors and love human company so make sure you come and visit them. Free FOTEC courses Are you aged between 19 and 64, in unpaid work, a carer, parent with young children or unemployed? If you want to brush up your skills, try out a new hobby, or learn with your children, we can provide courses tailored to your needs at the Farm. It could be arts and crafts, jewelry making, cooking, photography..... Please give Steff a ring to discuss any ideas you may have for a short course and let's make it happen. Art group Is anyone interested in forming a monthly art group / club on Fridays at the Farm? The Farm site is really inspiring and it seems a shame not to use it. I was thinking of a club where people of all abilities can get together and have fun being creative. The group wouldn't have a tutor and there'd be no right or wrong way to do any artwork. You'd bring along your own materials and perhaps we could put on a bit of an exhibition later in the year. What do you think? Please contact Steff if you are interested. School assemblies We have had great fun over the winter taking 2 of our chickens along to local schools. The chickens have behaved im-peck-ably (Sorry, couldn't resist it!) The assemblies have been really useful, and enabled us to talk to local children directly. We have informed them of our activities and of course about the animals. We hope to support our local schools with outdoor education opportunities in the spring. Bath City Farm AGM Our 10th Annual General meeting was held on Thursday 16 November 2005. Whilst this wasn't the first AGM to be held in the building, it was the first time it was held there in the warm and dry - seated on chairs rather than straw bales! We continue to be grateful to the BBC's DIY SOS team for the amazing work they put in to complete the building for us this summer. Our thanks on the evening had to go to one stalwart member who helped us celebrate with a delicious bottle of "Bath City Farm Hedgerow Wine" which he'd made from the fruits and berries found on the farm! There were 18 of us on the night, and we were really pleased so many local residents turned up. As a consequence of the high profile activities this summer, and more and more things happening on the ground, we have been able to increase our local representation on the management committee from two to five. This is brilliant, as it provides a much stronger voice for people within the area - who are most affected by our work - to help direct the future of the farm. It also means that we have a much broader range of skills within the management team to support the work of staff and volunteers. Whilst 2005 was quite an emotional roller-coaster of a year, what with the building work and subsequent break-in, we hope that 2006 will be just as exciting but less nerve-wracking. Caroline Frances-King, Chair of Trustees. Dates for your diary Green Woodworking Courses For 2006 Introduction to Green Woodworking - one day taster session Friday 31st March 09.30 to 16.30 at the Farm. £35 per person including materials. Build your own pole lathe Friday 7th to Sunday 9th April 09.30 to 16.30 at the Farm. £150 per person including materials. Healthy living week Based in the South West of Bath, you will be able to join in with a wide range of activities. The fun starts on Wednesday 29th March and finishes on Thursday 6th April. For information and advise contact Sarah Bird at the Time Banks Project (01225 442813) in Twerton High Street and look out for events in the Bath Chronicle. On Thursday 6th April Healthy Living Week ends with a celebration at the Farm. There will be a nature trail, BBQ, fruit bug making, Whacky Races and hopefully some pampering sessions. You can also join in with animal care. Please contact the Farm for further details on the healthy living week and other Easter activities. Bath flower show This years Bath Flower Show takes place on Saturday 29th April to Monday 1st May. We will be running our marquee over three days and taking along some of our animals. There will be green woodworking demonstrations, weaving and spinning, and activities for the children. If you are able to help man the marquee, please contact Helen. In return for a four hour shift you will get free entry into the show. Fringe @ the Farm This years fringe event will take place on Friday 2nd June, 12.00 to 16.00. Fundraising has already begun in earnest and we can confirm that the Community Bus, a big top and juggling workshops are already booked for the day. there will be plenty of opportunities to help out on the day if you can, it's hard work but great fun. Lets hope the sun comes out this year. More details in the next newsletter. Spring clean at the Farm This years sponsored litter pick was held on Sunday 19th February. The aim was to raise money for all of the animals at the farm. We would like to thank all the litter pickers who braved the weather to help us clear the farm of unsightly and dangerous litter. This ensures that the fields are safe ahead of the arrival of the cows in April. Last year we raised £110 and we hope to have improved on that total this year. Please look for more information in the next issue of the newsletter. A big thank-you Huge thanks to everyone who helped to make our first Christmas party such a big success. We'd like to say a special thank you to Tamsin, Larry, Martin, Helen and Dean, Tina, Dawn, Julie, Oldfield Park Bookshop, Park Pets, Francis DIY, Twerton Spar, Cadburys and Wayne at Office Supplies. Thanks also to all the kids who helped us decorate our Christmas tree with wild bird feeders, berries and old man's beard, as they did a great job. Why volunteer at Bath City Farm? (A volunteers tale) I have been involved at the Farm for about 10 months now and it has been very enjoyable and educational. I have made some good friends and have always felt part of the Farm, having been brought up in Whiteway. It is a privilege to be able to contribute to the community. The highlight of the year has been the arrival of the pigs. It's nice to see all our efforts in creating the fencing, gates etc. turning out a success. I have been fortunate enough to attend a green woodworking course, through the Farm, and I hope to pass on some of those new skills to people in the community. I think the Farm is a valuable asset to the local community and it's good to see local children enjoying it and being educated along the way. It can only bode well for the future of the Farm. Let's hope this year will be as successful and popular as last year. Rob (volunteer) Newsletter contributions If you would like to write something for our next edition, we are offering 6 free-range eggs for the best article. You could write a story, poem, recipe or tell us what you like about the farm. Please send your article to Steff at the Farm.  |
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