Popular Mansfield visitor attraction fighting 'uncertain future'

Willow Tree Family Farm is a registered charity based in Shirebrook, which provides a community cafe, animal therapy for adults and children with autism, along with a family community farm to visit.The 5-acre farm on Langwith Road, which opened in 2003, had to close the site gates to the public last month, with no idea when they will be able to reopen.

They have over 40 species of animals on the farm, including meerkats, alpacas and reptiles who are now being cared for by a team of volunteers.

The charity depends on income generated by their onsite community cafe, animal experiences and entry donations, and are now unable to generate the funds required to maintain their animal care, staffing and animal feed bills.Despite the uncertainty, the staff are making many personal sacrifices to continue caring for the animals, but they are now reaching out to the public to help them continue as part of the Shirebrook community and beyond.Managing director David Taylor said: “As a charity we do not usually receive any government or local council funding to operate.

“We are a self-sustaining organisation solely dependent on visitors’ donations.”

David has been a volunteer for the past eight years and does not take a wage for his work at the farm, as do a further 26 volunteers alongside the seven permanent staff members.He continued: “Our basic animal feed bill is £1,105.00 and bedding is £350.00 a month.

“This doesn't fund the additional fresh produce they are given on a daily basis either.

“The charity has a very uncertain future as we are unaware of when we will be able to reopen and when visitors will be able to return.”

The farm is concerned that they will be forced to keep their gates closed indefinitely if they are unable to raise enough money to keep the animals safe until lockdown is lifted.

The charity has been a valued part of the community and is accessed by people from around the country, and is extremely popular with those with special educational needs, thanks to their inclusive approach to volunteering and educational programmes.

The farm go even further than just providing an animal attraction – they also work alongside FareShare to distribute surplus food to vulnerable households in the area – a service which has become invaluable for some during lockdown.

David explains: “We package up food parcels and distribute them to those who we know are vulnerable in the area – whether they are elderly, have special needs members of their family, or simply cannot afford food due to being out of work, we deliver as many boxes as we can every Thursday.

“We really want to be able to continue doing this for as long as possible, but the FareShare membership costs money which we no longer have, so we really need donations to allow us to continue our work.”Many of the animals at the farm have been rescued – some even dropped off at the farm gates anonymously – and have been taken in to provide a forever home.

Staff are now concerned that some animals would not currently be able to be re-homed due to the current climate, leaving a very uncertain future for them and those who care for them.

The farm have been forced to suspend accepting other rescue animals to enable them to safeguard those already living onsite, which was not a decision that was taken lightly by the staff.

David explains: “Willow Tree at this time has had to suspend accepting any more animals, as we are already struggling.

“We unfortunately can’t afford any more mouths to feed until we can reopen.”Willow Tree Farm has run out of their reserve money, and is now solely relying on the community’s generosity help to keep the site open, the animals safe, and for their community work to continue.

They have already received some fantastic donations, but the size of the farm means this needs to continue until restrictions are lifted.

Shirebrook Stags Supporters Club and Kim Toplis have both donated a large amount of animal feed last week.

Kim explains: “I saw the plea on facebook and had to do something. I started by buying some with my own money, and managed to get some carrots donated from my workplace.

“Then my friends Chloe and Rachael, who are huge animal lovers, wanted to help so they put an appeal on a facebook page they are on and we got more donations from there.

“Pets At Home in Chesterfield were really generous and donated too, so along with the money we raised, we manage to get quite a decent amount to keep them going for a few days”

The farm currently has three options available for those wishing to support the animals:

An Amazon wishlist, which allows people to select items from their shopping list and get them delivered straight to the farm.

They also have a PayPal account and a JustGiving page for monetary donations, which allows them to continue to fund the community work that they do:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/252GC42607IT9

https://www.paypal.me/willowtreefamilyfarm

https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/willowtreefamilyfarm