Scotland: Prince of Wales tours ‘amazing’ farm providing child mental health support

The Prince of Wales toured an urban farm during his visit to the West Midlands, meeting staff involved in its work to provide mental health support and holiday activities to young people.

By PA News Agency
The National Scot
Apr 25, 2024

Excerpt:

The urban farm was established in 1988 by a group of volunteers from the local community and recently underwent a major restoration project after funding was granted in 2022 to provide mental health support for children.

Based on a six-acre site including woodland and orchards, the farm runs a range of therapeutic programmes for children, including those diagnosed as autistic.

Ms Hawkeswood said small groups of children from a local secondary school who were not engaging with classes were also supported by projects at the farm, “building respectful relationships” and “achieving great things” through mutual trust.

The former police officer said the farm, which could be emulated in other cities on sites of about an acre, supported children from the age of eight up and had done projects for the NHS last year which had shown an improvement across a huge variety of measurements.

During the visit, William had talked about his own animals, including guinea pigs, and how the breathing of horses could be relaxing.

Ms Hawkeswood said: “It’s a thing that people probably just take as a given, you have got a pet dog at home and you actually don’t realise how that’s lowering your blood pressure and supporting you when you are stressed.”

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