Bath City Farm's plea to sustain vital community services

Bath City Farm is ploughing through its crowdfunding campaign, thanks to the generous support of the public and its dedicated backers.

The farm, based at Whiteway, Bath, has reached the halfway mark with its crowdfunder campaign. The campaign has raised £23,876 of its £40,000 goal.

The campaign runs until Monday, September 2 with match funding in place on every individual donation up to £250 and the public are being urged to help the farm to reach its goal.

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The farm is finding that demand for its services has never been higher , and it needs to raise the money to cover rising running costs which have risen by £80,000 this year, to maintain and grow services as well as keep the site free at the point of access.

The money raised would pay for core operational costs such as staff to manage the Farm site, rising energy costs and maintaining the 37-acre site for the 50,000 people who visit the farm each year.

Money raised would also pay for vet bills, animal food and shelter. The animals play a vital role in the targeted therapeutic work with participants of the farm’s health and wellbeing programmes.

For many, the farm is a place to recover from acute mental distress and rebuild a healthier lifestyle in connection with nature and each other.

The farm is a free resource for many families on a low income to spend a day out with children, experience and meet Farm animals and access vital green space. Visitors can also access nature trails around the 37-acre site including woodland, ponds, a safe playground for children and allotments, all of which cost money to maintain, for example upkeeping safe pathways and gardening the grounds and flower beds.

Farm communications lead Alison Howell said: “We know it is a challenging time for everyone, but if you like what the Farm does for the local community, please consider giving to this campaign to help us sustain our vital community work and reach our target of £40 000. Every pound donated makes a difference to the hundreds of lives we can impact positively and the Aviva Community Fund are generously match funding every donation up to £250 until Monday, September 2, enabling us to raise even more."

To support Bath City Farm and donate please visit: https://crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-us-grow-services-for-the-community