Farm school planned to help teenagers with learning difficulties find jobs

We want to hear from you: please tell us about your experience of the online community.

Adrian_Scope

“They say school days are the happiest of your life,” says Gary Smith, head teacher of one of Britain’s most successful schools for children with learning difficulties. “But they aren’t supposed to be your only happy days.” When he became head teacher at Market Field School near Colchester, Essex, 30 years ago, it had 50 students and was a ramshackle collection of mainly temporary classrooms known as the “chicken shed”. A significant number of children come from Jaywick, one of the most deprived areas of England. Having fought off an attempt to abolish the school, Smith demolished the “chicken shed” himself in 2014. In its place, on the same site, he opened a brand new £7m state-of-the-art school with 200 pupils aged five to 16. He is already adding a new wing which will provide an extra 100 places.

Source: The Independent

How do you feel about farm schools? Would attending one have helped you?

wilko

Having worked in the industry from age 17 doing a 3 year apprenticeship in dairy herd environment where you had to be hands on and have developed husbandry skills in animal care, both tractor driving and maintenance taking proifiency tests to get your appropriate craft certificate. Being left in charge of milking 200 cow dairy herd, calving cows, giving injections and preforming veterinary tasks is and not to be taken lightly. The new modern tractors which have a lot of electrical components to assist the driver are not for the novice and unless you are brought up with the changes its a lot to learn for any able Intelligent person. The general public have little or no idea what goes on behind the farm gate to produce their food.