Swansea Community Farm

The Farm Overview

The Farm is led by volunteers from marginalized backgrounds who care for the animals and the site, welcoming visitors and nature alike. Each year, around 140 individuals, ranging in age from 8 to 85, participate in our volunteer program. Over 90% of our core volunteers face mental health challenges, more than 50% are neurodivergent, and 26% have a physical disability. Many of the adult volunteers are unemployed, while numerous young participants struggle with regular school attendance or face significant academic challenges. Through their involvement in Farm volunteering, participants learn practical and social skills, grow in confidence, and combat social isolation, all within a welcoming and inclusive environment.

Impact

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Volunteering at the Farm is open to anyone aged 16 and older. It brings people together to maintain the Farm as a place for everyone. Outdoor volunteering provides daily opportunities to practice the five ways to well-being: connecting with others, being physically active, taking notice of their surroundings, learning new skills, and giving to others. Additionally, volunteering in the kitchen helps develop food confidence, alleviates the effects of food poverty, and fosters hospitality and employability skills. Many case studies highlight the life-changing impact of this work; one volunteer remarked, “It literally saved my life.” Through experience and feedback, we’ve seen how transformative it can be to have the opportunity to be an active citizen, contributing to the local community rather than feeling like a passive patient or victim. Finding a community where kindness, patience, and mutual respect are valued—along with an understanding of disability and mental health struggles—proves to be a simple yet effective way to improve lives.

On Saturdays, young people take charge of the Farm, creating a youth club for vulnerable children referred for additional support. Many of these young volunteers have Autism Spectrum Conditions, ADHD, challenging behaviors, or strained social and family relationships. Typically, they come to the Farm feeling withdrawn, shy, isolated, and different. Through their involvement, they become more confident, outgoing, and discover new passions, gaining valuable experience for future careers. The young people particularly enjoy cooking and sharing healthy meals together.

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Why Are We Crowdfunding?

Our training kitchen is nearly 14 years old and has seen very little investment during this time, resulting in frequent breakdowns. This summer, we experienced failures with fridges, freezers, and cookers, making it challenging for our volunteers, especially during the hottest days when heat and ventilation were inadequate. Coginio Ynghyd (Cooking Together) is dedicated to bringing people of all ages together to learn food preparation skills. We want our amazing volunteers, many of whom are in at-risk groups, to feel physically comfortable and to work with equipment that is safe and reliable. We are crowdfunding to update our training kitchen and to improve the cooling and ventilation systems. Additionally, we plan to offer a minimum of 10 cooking workshops to at-risk community members, with the goal of reducing social isolation, boosting skills and learning, and providing warm, healthy meals.

behavioursinadequate heat and ventilation conditions prevailed

We will allocate £6,500 of the funds raised toward new energy-efficient kitchen equipment, as well as ventilation and cooling solutions, to create a more accessible and future-proof training space. The kitchen, originally built in 2012, has lacked investment and was closed from 2020 to October 2021 due to COVID-19. Consequently, there is a pressing need to update the cookers, fridges, and ventilation.

Additionally, we will use £3,500, along with any extra stretch funding we can secure, to conduct a minimum of 10 cooking training workshops for at-risk individuals. These workshops will provide opportunities for participants to cook and enjoy healthy meals while developing their skills, passions, and employability. Our goal is to create a warm, social environment where people can gather and benefit from food-based training.

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