Down to Earth is our therapeutic horticultural project which involves working within a sustainable community food cycle.

We cover the entire organic principle growing process from planning what to grow to sowing seeds, planting out, weeding, watering and harvesting produce & seeds; using our potting shed to start the seedlings off and then moving plants to our 24ft polytunnel and outside raised beds when they become established.

We sell our eggs, vegetables, salad, herbs and edible flowers to establishments within the young people’s local communities of Derbyshire and Sheffield. We currently supply Lambton Larder, who buy our eggs for their deli shop in Bakewell. We also supply our eggs, fresh veg and salad to Sauced Here, an online provider of locally sourced goods based in Ashford on the Water, and hope to start working soon with Thornbridge Hall with their exciting new local farm shop venture. The newly re-opened Blind Bull in Little Hucklow have also expressed an interest to work with us.

We work with our customers all year round, providing produce throughout the changing seasons to suit their changing requirements. The community food cycle benefits our students through real work place experience and skill development.

Down to Earth is growing and adapting to become more of a holistic therapy garden, with planting of flowers and herbs to stimulate the senses. We are creating a sensory garden with pond, seating area and calming scented plants to help stimulate our students as well as encouraging native insects to return to the area. We have been donated 200 native trees and bushes through eforests.co.uk to create a tree corridor to link from our land with already established trees in the area.

Using our own produce we also teach basic cookery skills from planning a recipe, gathering ingredients, cooking safely to produce home made hearty, healthy foods cooked and eaten all together in our new food hut, donated by Mr and Mrs Cooper, Sheffield, providing essential life skills to our students.