ABOUT EDUCATION AT OVERBURY FARMS
Overbury embraces education from nursery learning through to, and beyond, PhD research. We enjoy regular participation from our Grasshoppers nursery children, classes from schools in our area and City centre schools such as Wychalls and wider community learning. We host over 150 children from a range of local schools for the Countryside Learning Foundation. In the Spring we host public events such as Lambing Live and Open Farm Sunday to open the farm, our processes and wider countryside management and conservation up to those interested in learning more.
Working in partnership with organisations such as LEAF, SOYL, Countryside Learning and Rothamsted Research, Overbury continues to promote learning and progress in a range of contexts including conservation, agritech, rural working and fibre optic technologies.
SCHOOL AND FARM TWINNING
Following on from the 2007/8 Year of Food & Farming we have continued our involvement in an exciting project with Wychall School in Birmingham.
This link is now well established and have just had a visit from the 2017 group. By working closely with the teachers we have organised termly visits for a year group and linked it closely to their current school topics. In 2008 this was made into a short film by Colin Bell of the Tewkesbury YMCA Video Club. Both Jake Freestone and Penelope Bossom have attained their CEVAS accreditation and benefited from LEAF Speak Out Training.
We work closely with our village school and Overbury Grasshoppers. See their blog showing some of their farm visits. – Overbury Grasshoppers Blog. We are keen to support Learning Outside the Classroom.
In September 2009 Overbury Farms completed CEVAS (Countryside Educational Visits Scheme) Part 2 and we were awarded our quality badge for LOtC (Learning Outside the Classroom). However we have decided not to renew our membership as the scheme is aimed more towards those who run an enterprise around school visits.
COUNTRYSIDE FOUNDATION FOR EDUCATION NOW COUNTRYSIDE LEARNING
Overbury Farms has been actively involved with school educational visits for some years.
The current team started with Countryside Foundation for Education School Open Days which we now do every other year – 2013, 2011 & 2009′s open days were a great success with over 150 children attending each day – “The passion and commitment shown by everyone at Overbury was a joy to see.
The impact their story had on the children, parents and teachers was the perfect illustration of just how to educate, inform and inspire people to love, understand and appreciate the British countryside” Gary Richardson (CEO of The Countryside Foundation for Education).
LEAF’S ROLE IN EDUCATION
Being a LEAF demonstration farm, we enjoy links not only with our local first school and nursery, but with community groups and collages trying to encourage the use of the farm as a resource to educate children and the general public about farming, food and conservation.
If you run an organisation or group and want to learn more about farming at Overbury or a more general overview of food production or conservation then get in contact.
INSTITUTE OF FARM MANAGEMENT
On the 26th March 2009 we hosted over 90 Agricultural students from 9 colleges from all over the UK. The students were visiting us as a modern farm business case study, as part of a national competition run by the Institute of Farm Management, Clydesdale Bank & Farmers Weekly, see the Farmers Weekly Interactive report.
The students were given financial and physical performance data with which to provide us with a written plan answering several questions set by Penelope & Jake. The finalists gave a presentation at the Royal Show on the 7th July the winner was Diane Cornthwaite and Joseph Ormerod from Myerscough College.