Trustees to join our Board

Bath City Farm was established in 1995, when a group of residents campaigned to the local council for a previously tenanted farm to be provided to the community, for the purposes of creating a community farm. It is now one of the largest City Farms in the country, situated on 37 acres of ancient farmland within the protected World Heritage landscape of Bath, with some of the best views across Bath and the Avon Valley.

From the beginning our vision has been to build a healthy community rooted in nature, food, farming and each other.  As a welcoming urban farm, we use our unique setting and targeted projects to educate, improve wellbeing and transform lives. Our goals are to enable the development of skills and confidence, improve mental, physical and social wellbeing, and inspire environmental awareness. We aim to increase community engagement, offer a rewarding visitor experience, and inspire nature connection, animal welfare and regenerative agriculture.

Bath City Farm attracts around 50 000 visitors a year free of charge, and works with over 1300 children, young people and adults directly through its therapeutic and educational programmes. We host a wide range of community events throughout the year which are free to attend and promote community cohesion and participation locally.

We currently have a board of 10 trustees with a broad range of expertise. The board is responsible for overseeing the strategy and legal compliance of the Farm.

New trustees

The Farm is currently implementing some exciting strategic developments and as such requires expertise and local knowledge to help guide and support the operational staff to make the most of these opportunities.

The Farm is currently in the final year of its 3-year strategy. In 2022, we opened our Roots to Work Café and Shop as a community hub and training facility. Alongside this, we are developing new infrastructure to grow more food to further diversify revenue. We offer a range of community adult mental health services and a work-based training programme for people who are long-term unemployed. Children and young people are at the heart of what we do, and we have recently launched a new Alternative Provision programme alongside a range of free to access child and youth services. We are also implementing an exciting plan to regenerate the habitats across our wider site to enhance biodiversity.

There are rich opportunities for the board to participate and lend their unique skills to the Farm to support its strategic direction. Board members each take a lead role and/or contribute to a Working Group on a particular theme and may support a specific team member in their area of expertise. Bath City Farm is looking for individuals who have some of the following skills either through life experience or professional qualification to support us in the next phase:

· farming

· local lived experience

· animal care

· accountancy

· fundraising

· legal

· safeguarding

· buildings or property

· health and safety

Our farm community is drawn from a wide range of different backgrounds, and we promote a culture of respect for all. We welcome applications from all genders, backgrounds, and communities, particularly from currently under-represented groups on our Board including Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic, LGBTQ+, disabled people and people who are local to the Farm, based in the Whiteway and Twerton areas of Bath.

Being a trustee is a voluntary role, and so trustees are not paid for their work. We estimate being a trustee will take around 1-2 hours per week on average. Working group meetings occur every 2 months. Board meetings are quarterly and take place in person on a weekday evening.

If you would appreciate a conversation about the role, please contact brendan@bathcityfarm.org.uk