Our Skipton farm is off to a fantastic start this year!
We have had some great visits frim Co-op Oakwood, who join us on Mondays. They are our longest running partners so far, and we’re so appreciative of their dedication to the programme. They have done an excellent job braving the wet and wild weather, cracking on getting our barn set up ready for lambing season. The group’s favourite game to play on the farm is Empire, and we would like to congratulate visiting staff member, Mr Adams on his first win!
Co-op Grange have visited us on Tuesday and have impressed us with their politeness, maturity and by being relentlessly positive – saying yes to everything on the farm!
Ben had a lovely trip over to Leeds to visit the last two groups from Co-op Oakwood, getting to hear about everything they had gotten up to over the holidays. He also got to meet the new group who have been coming this half term, already living up to the high standards set by all Co-op Oakwood pupils.
We’re emerging from a week of spectacular snow in Skipton. Young people from Priesthorpe joined us on the farm slopes for some sledging under a bright blue sky. We all dodged the icy skate rink, firmly clutching fresh new risk assessments, to see the two new Highland calves and helped round up the sheep for their scans. One is expecting quadruplets, we’ll have several triplets, and numerous twins – we’re planning for a busy couple of weeks lambing in March.
We enjoyed watching our spin on Newsround in January and somehow all managed to avoid the cameras, except for a star appearance from Emily’s hand, a quick background glimpse of Mark and Ben’s back in the boot room. Jake, or Co-CEO, made his way up north, past the danger zone of congested Warrington motorway to visit us in the hills, only to be thwarted by the ice on the driveway. Luckily, Farmer Carnie was on hand to ferry Jake, ASDA and all other young visitors up over the snow to the farm. Bronny was the only hardy soul willing to brave both the driveway and a game of scrabble, with Welsh cakes in hand. She helped Mark ferry sheep into the scanning machine and helped Clare dream of fell ponies. She was on her way to a follow-up in Priesthorpe after a visit to Monmouth in November, only to find one of the young people had crossed paths with her on the road and was on his way to Skipton, he just can’t get enough of Jamie’s Farm!
2024 will be the first full year of visits at Skipton, and we can’t wait to see what the months ahead bring.
