Potsford Farm
Suffolk
Key facts
A diverse and busy care farm, Potsford employs morethan 30 staff and works with around 25 clients per day.
The operators Nathan and Kevin are care farmers
who have a background in mental health rather thanfarming. “It has been a key factor in our success,”believes Nathan. “We have never really been shortof referrals.”
Postford Farm meets the care farming Code of Practice

Our story
Before 2010, Nathan and Kevin were both working as
registered mental health nurses – one as a hospitalward manager the other as a care coordinator in thecommunity. “And then, all of a sudden, Kevin had thishair-brain idea that we would start a care farm,” says
Nathan. “This was despite the fact that we had nofarming or business experience,” he adds. The idea
came out of the blue.
However, by a strange quirk of fate, around thesame time the farm where the two nurses kept
horses came up for rent. The coincidences didn’t
stop there. When they wrote a letter to the owner,
laying out their ideas for a care farm, they were
met with open arms. For it turned out that thefarmer and his wife both had health and social carebackgrounds in their families, so they came on
board with the project as equal partners.
That was many years ago now, in fact they are about
to celebrate their 10th anniversary. “The care farm
was meant to be,” concludes Nathan. “It all just fell
into place.”

What we doGiven their background, it follows that one of themajor ‘Co-farmer’ groups at Potsford comprisesof adults with mental health issues (25%), withthe remainder comprising of adults with learning
disabilities (75%). The balance of funding received isconsistent with this.
But in either case, the care farm’s aim, says Nathan,is ‘to promote Co-farmers’ independence, self-esteem
and self-confidence – so that they need less help fromhealth and social care’.
The Co-farmers travel to the care farm either under
their own transport, or on public transport to the
local train/bus station, from where they are collected.
They are referred from social services, local learning
disability and mental health teams – and in somecases through self-referral and Direct Payments.
Being in a quiet and peaceful part of rural Suffolk, thecare farm offers a diverse range of activities. Most
centre around looking after and working with the long
list of livestock; cattle, sheep, goats and chickens, aswell as horses, pigs and a donkey. There are similar
opportunities on the commercial livery yard too.
Away from working with livestock, there is anallotment where Co-farmers are involved in thepropagation of fruit and flowers, which are sold at
local market stalls. Furniture restoration, and otherwoodwork projects such as making bird or bat-boxes
take place in a barn on site. They can also go horseriding at a riding school next door - which in thefuture Nathan and Kevin hope to offer themselves.
The care farm staff are also involved in two
additional activities that support service users. The
first being a community support company, aiding
people who need help at home which includes someof their own Co-farmers. The second is helping
Co-farmers with their benefits, housing or similar
issues. “Once they are referred to us,” says Nathan,“they often end up being discharged from the careof statutory services and have nobody else to pick up
these issues for them.”

Challenges and achievements
There have been two main challenges for Nathanand Kevin. Due to the fact that they have been
operating for many years, some Co-farmers havebeen attending up to three times a week, for 5 ormore years – so a challenge for Nathan and Kevin is
to achieve a balance between keeping activities new,fresh and up-to-date whilst maintaining the stability
and routine which is equally as important to many
service users.

What people say about us“The farm offers activities I am interested
in and it also offers a friendly and relaxedenvironment with structured activities. It
gets me out of the house and stimulates
my mind.”Co-farmer“Potsford Farm has saved my son’s life, it
has given him a reason to get up in themorning, he is a different person now. He
hasn’t self-harmed in over a year and a half
now and his confidence has grown. Thankyou for giving me my son back.”
Relative“I strongly believe that non-medical
interventions that address people’s
problems with confidence and selfesteem are essential. The farm is afriendly non-threatening environment
which can help ease people back intosocial work-related activities.”
Nurse“The clients I have referred have all
benefited greatly from attending.
Whenever I have visited, there is always
a relaxed atmosphere but with a purpose.
Those attending are treated with respect
and allowed to be themselves.”

The second challenge is an even greater one ofuncertainty around the future - what will be possible
under the UK’s new agricultural payment scheme,
post Brexit?

Social WorkerDespite these challenges, the future is bright for
Potsford Farm. Above all else, Nathan and Kevin’s
background and experience in mental health has
won them support and trust from commissioners.
They see their Co-farmers up to three times per
week and have done so for several years. They offer
multiple benefits to commissioners; monitoring
people’s ongoing health, spotting any problems
that might arise, and diagnosing what kind ofintervention is needed.

Contact: Nathan or Kevin, Directors

For more details
Email: office@potsfordfarm.co.uk
Tel: 01728 748322
Website: www.potsfordfarm.co.uk
Social Farms & Gardens, in partnership with Thrive,
are delivering the Growing Care Farming project.
See www.farmgarden.org.uk/GCF for more details.