It’s on a drizzly Wednesday afternoon that I find myself passing the busy nail salons and gold chain filled windows of East Street, Bedminster. Under the green glow of Asda, I skirt around the pavement patrons of the Barley Mow and turn right to be faced with an eccentric cider house and an industrial estate beyond. I pause, unsure. I am looking for Windmill Hill City Farm, Bristol’s oldest city farm, whose funding struggles reached a head in 2009 when they appealed to the public to help raise £50,000 to remain open.

This goal was achieved at Christmas through the Save Our Farm appeal which included a huge launch event followed by a myriad of fundraising activities including cake making, farm calendars, art auctions, music nights and the massive generosity of online pledges. However, this was an emergency cash plug and the farm is still in need of great support. In January, the farm appealed for help to improve the animal shed and with animal feed alone costing £3000 a year, it is clear they need continued help to survive.

So far, so Evening Post - for many people (especially those who are buggy free and bacon sandwich eating) there is limited appeal in propping up the fortunes of a few swines (Animal Farm was not good PR). However, there is so much more going on there. The WHCF has aspirational objectives for this site, from providing opportunities of social interaction to empowerment of local people. They aim to achieve this through several projects currently running at the farm. ‘Make It Yours’ uses a combination of photography, writing and ICT to allow adults with mental health issues to share their stories. There is also the Healthy Eating Project which uses gardening and cooking as a medium for developing basic numeracy and literacy. There are also self-help groups, arts events, day-care for older people and an OFSTED nursery. On top of this there’s a computer centre, pitch for hire and even an adventure playground.

This broad and surprising range of amenities and activities demonstrates the WHCF’s commitment to improving the local community and makes a strong case for continued financial support. It is a surprising amount to be going on at a relatively small site and the heart of it is still the working farm, which I would highly recommend checking out. Although the entrance is slightly forbidding and the yard slightly dilapidated, the animals are super well and fabulous. There are beautiful stinky young goats, handsome ducks, fearsome geese and chickens so plumptious and groomed if they ever remake The Wizard of Oz, I expect the farm to get a casting call. Special mention also needs to go to the pigs, Rosie and Patricia. They both rolled out of their sties with the grunting attitude of Mariah in Precious and were the star turn of a rainy day.

From my visit and research into all that the farm provides, it is clear that they are worthy of the continued support they have received. It would be a terrible loss to the service users, care recipients and the community as a whole if Windmill Hill City farm were unable to stay open. As Carolyn Hecker (Head of the Save Our Farm Committee) says; “This is not the end of the fundraising road - it is only the beginning.” So get down there, have a cake, put some money in the collection box and grunt eight octaves with Rosie and Patricia and help keep this farm open.

www.windmillhillcityfarm.org.uk

Morgan Matthews
Illustrations by Gemma Randall