Special Needs Visits
Farmer John has been able to invite special needs groups to the farm since 2010 when a generous grant enabled him to purchase a passenger trailer. It was designed to accommodate 2 wheelchairs as well as 30 secure seats with seatbelts. The farm has a disabled access toilet as well as areas of the farm that are laid out for easy wheelchair travel.

In 2015, Southfields farm partnered with Woodlands School which serves Special Needs children and young people from the age of 4 to 19. An accessible area of the farm was developed with pens for small livestock and poultry as well as growing areas. It became known as the Paddock and is only a 5 minute walk from the school. However, the tractor and trailer ride to and from the farm is always a highlight and has featured on many of the pupils’ thank you cards.
While an arrangement like the one with Woodlands School is ideal due to its close proximity, this is not an option for many schools due to transport logistics. However, we are very happy to offer occasional visits which pupils and staff will find very engaging.. As with our primary school visits, we encourage the school teacher to contact us and arrange a pre-visit recce. To help you plan a visit, you can view our activity list here and our downloadable policy documents including specific risk assessment and insurance details are found here.
Although a visit is nominally 2 hours either in the morning or early afternoon, we recognise that there are many constraints with special needs classes and we will try to be flexible and work with you. As with primary visits, there is the option of eating a packed lunch in the farm classroom or out in the yard on a fine day. Again to help you plan, the current availability is shown in the calendar here.
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The pricing structure for a class of up to 20 with up to 10 adults:
A 2 hour visit (morning or afternoon) plus lunchtime - £150
A full day visit, 10am - 2pm including lunchtime - £200