The drive up to the farm is what first intrigues you.

Its perhaps
unsurprisingly surround by more farmland and big country houses,
most likely complete with a tweed-wearing family of upper-class
toffs. But after the expected comes the unexpected.
A school. The entrance to this particular farm is via a secondary
school, namely The Warriner School. More than that in fact, the farm
is set in the school itself. Imagine how cross country would have
been if youd had to negotiate your way through a field of sheep as
well as actually running that gruelling distance.
The farm itself is 120 acres of mixed farmland, with a range of
livestock. Set in beautiful Oxfordshire countryside, in the village of
Bloxham, it is a commercial farm with produce sold through the farm
shop, including pork, beef and lamb.
The farm has a hugely educational role in the local community.
Schools, community and pre-school groups can regularly be found at
the farm as part of its outreach programme. This is part of the
farms aim to make people more aware of where their food comes
from and what processes are involved. This is particularly relevant in
this day and age where people buy food from the supermarket
without even wondering how it got there.
Walking through the farm, it would be difficult not to notice the
horse drawn vehicles, vintage machinery and agricultural
implements. These are used to illustrate historical developments in
agriculture and students also get to use them in restoration projects,
adding another hands on aspect to the learning of students at the
school.
This is not the only place that the farm honours the past: it also
boasts four ancient ridge and furrow fields, which are definitely at

their best when covered with wildflowers in the summer months.

The farm has also planted new woodland and is in the process of
restoring hedgerows, which anyone can volunteer to help with.
It is clear that the farm spends a lot of time on the conservation of
its site and educating as many people as possible about the joys of
the countryside. Every two years they hold an open weekend for the
local community in order to encourage them to become more
actively involved with the farm.
The farm owns 13 adult Dexters, the smallest breed of British cattle.
They originated in southwest Ireland and they come in three basic
colours: the most common colour is black but there are also red and
dun (a dull, brownish grey). The calves are reared for meat, which is
sold locally and to parents of children at the school. The farm also
has five breeding sows (land race, pietrain and Tamworth) and a
large-white boar.
There is also a flock of 98 breeding ewes and two rams, which graze
the organic pastures in rotation with the cattle. The ewe breeds
consist of 30 Scotch half-breds, 48 Suffolk crosses and 20 mules.
The farm also keeps six Anglo-Nubian nannies and one billy-goat.
The farm houses them inside during the winter and lets them out to
grass during the summer. The farm uses the sheep and goats for
milking demonstrations to the school pupils and visitors. They also
use goat's milk for rearing orphan lambs and sometimes calves.
Other animals kept on the farm include two horses, a Suffolk and a
Clydesdale, mostly used for pulling the horse drawn wagon. There
are also several breeding groups of poultry, whose fertile eggs are
then incubated by other schools. The farm also has a group of Old
English Pheasant Fowl, which it is responsible for breeding in
conjunction with the Rare Breeds Survival Trust.

There are also two geese that are owned by the farm, although they
seem to prefer spending their time running around the schools
playgrounds rather than sticking to the farm limits this just shows
how closely linked the farm and school actually are!
Much of the land the farm has is grassland that is used for grazing
the stock. Not all of the land is owned by the farm, as more than half
of it is actually rented from surrounding landowners. There is also a
paddock, which the farm is allowed to use rent-free. In the past
seven years, the farm has trebled the amount of land under its
control.
An average tour of the farm takes about half a day and this gives
you an introduction to all the available resources and facilities. The
great thing about school visits is that they can be tailor-made by the
farm to really make the most of it.
The farm has had its fair share of publicity, the most exciting of
which would arguably be His Royal Highness Prince Charles visit in
2003. The prince even took a ride on the farms horse drawn wagon.
The farm has also appeared on the BBCs long running program,
Countryfile and featured on historian Tony Robinsons The Worst
Jobs in History, which aired on Channel 4.
Funding has always been an issue here, with Local Education
Authority being withdrawn in full last year, amounting to a third of
the farms 120,000 annual budget. This has led to a push towards
a more commercial aspect in an effort to keep Oxfordshires only
school farm afloat.
Despite all this, the farm has always put nature first. Most of the
arable land has six metre grass and wildflower margins around its
fields offering a safe and sustained place for animals such as birds

to feed. There is an overwhelming sense here that despite possible

financial struggles in the future, the environment in and around the
farm will never be allowed to suffer.
The Warriner School Farm Trust is a registered charity that supports
the aspects of the farm concerned with the educational possibilities.
It provides extra financial help through donations. One of the most
notable donators to the charity is the local MP Tony Baldry,
Its not all about what you can do on the farm either. Theres a
purpose built classroom where you can take part in various craft
workshops. With a wide range of day and evening courses, its all
too easy to sign up for every available opportunity especially with
Christmas crafting just around the corner!
Whatever you spend you day doing, make you sure to stop by the
farm shop to pick up a souvenir. From produce of the farm to
calendars with pictures of the farm in them, there is a wide range of
gifts and food with minimal travel miles.