Care Farm Marks Decade with Call for Sustained Funding

A care farm marked its tenth anniversary by appealing for ongoing financial support to broaden the assistance it offers. Pathways, located in north Lowestoft, Suffolk, encompasses 13 acres, featuring a cafe, and aids individuals facing various health and wellbeing difficulties. Co-founder Geoff Stevens stated: “It’s a great achievement and celebration of everything we’ve done so far.” He added: “It’s as important as some aspects of the NHS; we can see people really quickly which is vital.” The farm receives financial contributions from diverse sources, corresponding to the various groups it assists. Over 50% of its funding originates from Suffolk County Council, with 18% from Norfolk County Council, 14% from donations and small grants, 8% from sales of produce and the cafe, 7% from independent fees, and 2% from education funding. In the previous year, the farm’s income exceeded its expenditure by merely £2,400. Mr Stevens commented: “The main thing is to try and get some sustainable funding.” He further explained: “We know budgets are tight for social services and the councils, but we need to have investment in what we are doing, rather than chasing the funding every single year.” Colin Cripps stated: “”I’ve been at the farm now for about two years,”” He recounted: “I moved to Lowestoft almost four years ago, I’d been homeless before that and was living in a very isolated fashion. “What with Covid as well, that sort of tipped my mental health a little bit. “I’ve done little bits of clearing, general maintenance of the trees, we’ve got a big pile of wood that needs cutting up.”” Colin frequently collaborates with Stephen St. Claire, who shared his personal narrative during a day of coverage on BBC Radio Suffolk. Stephen St. Claire shared: “I was down the coalmines, and got smashed up down there and disabled. “I ended up here in Suffolk, met my wife Tina, and we’ve been together for two years now. “She’s turned my life around, and this gets me out the way for a few hours.”” He added: “I was a bit of a nomad, I didn’t care and was starting arguments in the pubs, and I thought it was about time I sort myself out.” East Suffolk councillor George King, representing Gunton and St. Margaret’s ward, remarked: “Pathways is all about giving people that second chance. He elaborated: “Whether they have fallen through the cracks of the educational system as a young person, falling through the cracks of society, so much they might have ended up in prison and now on probation, or just generally do not feel like they have a place for whatever reason.” King continued: “They may have some form of trauma and Pathways, especially led by Geoff, gives people that warming touch, that grounding.” Given his background as a former teacher, he believes the farm should have greater access to education funding. He asserted: “School can be an allotment, school can be looking after animals on a farm, it can be all of those things and the soft skills you get here are just as important as what you can learn in school.”