ORC staff have engaged with local schools and community groups in a number of different ways over the years. Visits to working farms can provide teachers and students with the opportunity to cover a range of National Curriculum subjects such as geography, science and technology, as well as providing the experience of field visits and working towards the requirements of citizenship. Teachers Packs and educational materials have also been developed.

Many children, from both urban and rural communities, do not have the opportunity to visit working farms to see for themselves how the food they eat is produced and to talk to the people responsible for producing that food. It is vital that they make that connection.

We aim to provide an opportunity for visitors to ask questions about working in this industry, to see in practice the links between farming and the food plates and to see the positive impacts farming can have on the environment, including landscape values.

Our site at Elm Farm is one of our primary tools for achieving our aims. It is a resource available to all, a unique balance of conservation in action and a working farm environment, including an education garden and newly established orchard with potential for school projects.

ORC staff are also available to provide talks to schools on a variety of topics relating to food, farming and the environment.

If you would like know more, please contact Roger Hitchings.