Each year LEAF’s (Linking Environment and Farming) Open Farm Sunday is a roaring and widely celebrated success. This year’s event is taking place on Sunday 7th June and marks 20 years since the project started.
Farmers across the country open their gates to welcome their local community for a day of exploration, learning and fun. The impact this day has is huge, from inspiring the next generation of farmers, to encouraging seasonal eating and connecting with the local community. You can read more about the impact of the 2025 Open Farm Sunday here.
Farms are wonderful places for children to visit, and none more so than children with additional needs. Nature offers sensory richness without the overload of many public spaces. Animals can create calm and connection. Practical learning activities can engage a child’s interest without the barriers they find in the classroom.
By making your Open Farm Sunday event as welcoming as possible for children with additional needs and their families you can enhance this impact even more. Here are a few simple things you can do to make this year your most inclusive one yet:
- Share pictures of the farm on your event page before the day, include key areas like the entrance gateway, the parking and the loos. This reduces anxiety on what the event will look like and gives children reassurance on where they are going.
- If you are running scheduled sessions such as demo’s, activities and talks, share a brief schedule of the day beforehand so families can plan ahead.
- Offer a simple map of the farm so families can find helpful areas such as loos, food and play spaces.
- Offer a quieter portion of the day e.g. when machinery isn’t running or when amplified music is turned down so guests with noise sensitivity can plan for a calmer visit.
- Provide a quiet area for families to spend time if they need a less intense space, a few straw bales and blankets in a shady corner is all that’s needed.
- Get creative and paint a few signs to help guide people around the farm. Use clear simple language so that everyone can understand.
- Limit unnecessary noise levels, generators, machinery, tannoys and music can all add to sensory overload, consider how you use these throughout the day and if some can be turned off to reduce noise levels.
- Offer a variety of food options or encourage picnics so that families can access food that works for them. Also make sure you’re signposting to water points and handwashing facilities to help keep guests hydrated.
- Offer a few seating areas around the farm so families can take a break, have a rest and regulate on site, guests will stay longer and feel more energised as a result.
- Offer activities that don’t demand too much talking/ engagement, some children don’t cope well with answering direct questions especially in new places, think about how to enable them to interact with activities in other ways. E.g.
- A self service animal feeding activity.
- Seed planting with equipment all laid out ready to use.
- A self led treasure map around the farm.
- A display table of items for children to smell and touch e.g. herbs, wool, feathers, egg shell, flowers, grasses, grains.
- Observation areas near grazing animals for guests to just sit and watch.
- Food preparation activities such as making bread dough or washing vegetables.
Open Farm Sunday is an amazing opportunity for local families to come and see the amazing work that you do and to show how important farmers are for the community and the environment. Make this year even more welcoming and encourage as many families as possible to come along. Remember if you’re not sure, you can always just ask families what would help them. Post a poll, or ask them to direct message you with things that would make their day flow smoothly.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article, and for looking at small ways to make your event more accessible. Even 1 or 2 of these ideas will go a long way to helping more families experience the wonderful day you are offering.
Good luck for your Open Farm Sunday, I can’t wait to see all the photo’s and updates from your events.
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