As Coronavirus restrictions across most of the UK continue to ease, a Northumberland farm has opened its doors for its first educational visits since the pandemic began more than a year ago.

Broxfield Farm, a working cattle and wheat farm based near Alnwick in Northumberland, welcomed Reception pupils from Bishop’s Primary School as part of a ‘Farm Discovery’ programme organised through national education charity, The Country Trust.

Designed to help children from urban areas to gain access to the countryside and learn more about the important role that agriculture plays in our food supply chain, the visits offer a unique way for children to learn about nature, the food they eat and how the countryside works – at a level tailored to their own age and understanding.

Over the course of two days, pupils from Bishop’s Primary School’s Josephine Butler and William Leech Campuses respectively descended on Broxfield Farm, where David Thompson and his family have tended the land for more than 200 years.

The pupils, aged 4-5, spent the days learning about food and farming and the connection between the two. They enjoyed a ride through the fields on a purpose-built passenger trailer, tried their hand at feeding some of the Aberdeen Angus suckler cows, including Pip and Dallas the bulls, milled their own flour from grains of wheat and enjoyed a nature trail through the ‘enchanted forest’ which surrounds the farmland.

Vicky Dewar, Deputy Director of Early Years at Bishop’s Primary School, commented:

“Due to Covid restrictions, our youngest learners have missed out on so much. Under normal circumstances, our early years curriculum at Bishop’s Primary is packed full with day trips and experiences for the children to enjoy as part of their learning, so it was wonderful to be able to finally get back to some kind of ‘normal’ and take our Reception pupils out on their first ever educational visit to the farm.

“For some of our children, this visit was their first experience of the countryside. Getting to see farm animals up close and just enjoy all of the open space is so important for their personal development and wellbeing, especially after so long in lockdown. We’re incredibly grateful to Farmer David for having us and to The Country Trust for making it possible.”

David Thompson has been heavily involved with the charity for over 20 years and hosts many visits to Broxfield each year. He said:

“It’s been great to welcome school trips back to the farm again. Over the years, I’ve worked with schools from all across the North East, hosting visits for pupils from Reception age, right up to Year 6. With each age group, the activities remain largely the same, the ‘pitch’ is what varies. With the little ones, it’s about helping them to explore the countryside safely and teaching them about the things which live and grow on a farm, whereas with older children, you can get into more detail about environmental concerns and the idea of food traceability.

“I was so impressed with the pupils from Bishop’s Primary School. For being so young, they were so engaged and attentive and asked some great questions. On both days that the pupils visited, new calves had just been born, which was a real bonus – to be able to show the children hours-old animals. They were amazed that the baby cows could already walk! A great time was had by all and I look forward to welcoming more pupils throughout the summer.”

Bishop’s Primary School operates as part of Northumberland Church of England Academy Trust (NCEAT), a multi-academy Trust for pupils aged 2-19.

For more information about The Country Trust, visit www.countrytrust.org.uk.

A top London security firm boss, whose bodyguards protect the rich and famous, has stepped in to support the Northumberland primary school which set him on the road to success.

A former Major in the British Army Reserve, Bob Morrison, owner of Mayfair-based Sec-Tech, now provides close protection for VIPs from the UK and abroad and advises on personal and corporate security.

But over the years he has also kept a watchful eye on his former school, Lynemouth Country Primary School, now named Bishop’s Primary School – William Leech Campus, which operates as part of Northumberland Church of England Academy Trust (NCEAT).

And, when he learned it had applied to the Greggs Foundation Breakfast Club, which provides a nutritious pre-school breakfast for primary pupils, he stepped in to help, providing two years’ worth of sponsorship.

Bob, whose father Jim Morrison ran the Post Office at 47 Albion Terrace from 1958 until 1987, attended Lynemouth County Primary School from 1963-69 before moving, at age 10, to King Edward VI Grammar School, Morpeth.

He said: “I received a great education at Lynemouth CP School and it has served me well throughout my life.

“It’s helped me achieve many things – 22 years with the Territorial Army in the Parachute Regiment and the Royal Logistics Corps, a commission at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and even an Honours Degree in International Business Studies with French and German – for which I am eternally grateful.

“For me, the opportunity to sponsor the Breakfast Club at my old school is simply a wonderful way to say thank you and it was also a pleasure to work with Greggs Foundation who made the whole process really easy.

“I know that there are other schools that could benefit, and I really hope more businesses will get on board and support this fantastic initiative.”

Amy Thompson, Head of Campus at Bishop’s Primary School – William Leech Campus, commented:

“We have been completely blown away by Bob’s generosity toward our school.

“As the cost of living has gone up and more recently, as Covid-19 has seen more and more people go without a full-time regular income, many of our families have found it increasingly difficult to fund their children’s place at breakfast club.

“Breakfast is such an important meal for kick-starting children’s metabolism and making sure that they’re properly ‘awake’, so being able to ensure that all of our pupils have eaten well before they begin their lessons each day is fantastic. It improves their attention span and their levels of concentration and also their overall behaviour in the classroom.

“On behalf of all of the staff and pupils, I’d like to extend a huge thank you to Bob and his team at Sec-Tech, as well as the team at the Greggs Foundation, for helping to make this possible.”

Lynne Hindmarch, Greggs Foundation, Breakfast Club Manager, commented:

“We currently support over 620 breakfast clubs nationally in areas of high disadvantage. The need is even greater due to COVID-19 as families who have always just about managed now find themselves in difficult circumstances asking for help for the first time.

“As part of Greggs Pledge, we hope to have 680 schools open by the end of 2021. We cannot do this alone and by working collaboratively with 106 wonderful partners such as Sec-Tech, we are able to support 40,000 children each school day access a FREE nutritional breakfast who otherwise might go without.”

To find out more about the programme please visit www.greggsfoundation.org.uk/breakfast-clubs.

For more information about Sec-Tech visit https://sectech-uk.com/.