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Help Us

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on Help Us Latest News The Farm

Free Fundraising Ideas!

We know that not everyone one is able to afford to donate so we have some ideas to help you donate to us without any extra cost to you!

  • Shopping: Find us via EasyFundraising and raise money while you shop!
  • Collection Tin: Do you have the perfect location to place one of our collection tins? Please get in touch to find out more. 
  • Fundraising: You could set up an event or activity to raise money for the farm, how about a sponsored abseil or bake sale?
  • Shopping: Find us on Give as you live online and raise money while you shop online!
  • Volunteering: Have you got a few hours spare a week? We have current vacancies with the garden and front of house roles, find out more: Volunteering & Work Experience | Deen City Farm
  • Word of Mouth: Tell everyone about us, all your friends, colleagues and family!
  • Social Media: Follow, share and like our content:
on Events Help Us Latest News

Fundraising Event: Hedgehog Figurine Decorating 

Sunday 2nd October

Very special event being held to raise money for our winter animal shelter appeal!

Join us on Sunday 2ndOctober to paint and take home a specially produced handmade Deen City Farm Hedgehog figure.

All proceeds from this activity will go directly towards providing new paddock shelters for our animals to protect them from the Great British weather!

Activity suitable for adults & children, recommended for ages 5+

£7.50 per Hedgehog, Advanced booking highly recommended. There will also be a selection of additional handmade figurines to purchase on the day, with all proceeds also going towards our shelter appeal. 

Book your tickets here

About our shelter appeal: We are fundraising to replace the 7 large animal shelters in our back fields. The shelters are old, with missing sides & holes in the roof, many of them were also badly damaged during Storm Eunice earlier in the year. We need to raise £5800 to replace all 7 and provide shelter from the Great British Weather for our animals. Thank you for your support. 

on Help Us Latest News Volunteers

We are recruiting Trustees!

The Trustees wish to appoint a number of new volunteer trustees to help support the long term development of the Farm.

Commitment:

The Board meets every other month, and Trustees would additionally be expected to spend a day, roughly every 3 months volunteering onsite or attending events and supporting fundraising activities. 

Main duties and responsibilities include:

  • Ensuring that Deen City Farm complies with its articles of association, charitable objectives and charity law.
  • Maintaining overall financial control and stability of the farm, ensuring that funds are spent appropriately and in line with our charitable objectives.
  • Assisting the management team with tasks as appropriate to your skills and experiences.
  • Contributing to the strategic direction of the organisation alongside the rest of the Board of Trustees and General Manager.
  • Input into and approve internal policies and procedures alongside the General Manager.
  • Safeguard the good name and values of Deen City Farm & Riding School.

Personal Specification:

  • An understanding and acceptance of the legal duties, responsibilities and liabilities of trusteeship.
  • Good independent judgment
  • Strong communication
  • Friendly and approachable
  • Knowledge of and interest in animals and community farms is desirable.
  • Candidates who are local are desirable, but it is essential that you are able to travel to the farm for meetings, events and the odd day of volunteering.
  • We are particularly looking to recruit trustees who have education, building management, fundraising, equestrian or human resources experience/knowledge

To apply:  

For more information on being a trustee or to apply please contact Henry Nelless, Chair of Trustees, on chair@deencityfarm.co.uk 

For a tour of the farm or information on the our work please contact Emma King, General Manager, on manager@deencityfarm.co.uk

on Events Help Us Latest News

2023 Calendar competition!

Next year will mark 45 years since Deen City Farm first opened its doors back in 1978.  To celebrate this milestone, we are launching a Photography Competition ahead of our big celebrations in 2023.  

The competition is looking for 12 very special photos to feature in a commemorative 2023 calendar.

We would love to see a variety of photos from the last four and a half decades of the farm. The photos can feature animals, the farm in general and/or people, but please ensure you have permission to submit your photo from any identifiable individuals in your entry.  

The 12 lucky winners will have their photos featured and credited in the calendar and also receive a free copy when the calendar is launched later this year.  

When entering a photograph, please provide your name, contact details including an email address and tell us the story behind your photograph, including when & where it was taken.  

To Enter: photographs can be sent via email to information@deencityfarm.co.uk, with email subject: ‘Calendar Competition 2023’ or via post – please mark for the attention of ‘Calendar Competition 2023’.  

Please don’t send original photos as we will not be able to return them. Photos must be of good quality to print. By entering, you are confirming that you agree with the competition’s terms and conditions (found below) and provide consent for the photograph to be used in our calendar or during our 2023 celebrations.  

We look forward to receiving your entries, good luck!  

Photography Competitions Terms and Conditions:  

The competition is to have a photograph featured in the Deen City Farm & Riding School Commemorative Calendar 2023.  

Entrants are responsible for ensuring they have read and understood the terms and conditions and requirements for photos. Any entry found not to comply will be disqualified.  

Eligibility & requirements:  

  1. The competition is free to enter and open to everyone of all ages, including Professional Photographers. A maximum of 2 entries per person is permitted.  
  2. Images entered into the competition must not have previously been offered for sale, featured in paid publications, won or been runner-up in any other photography or calendar competition.  
  3. Entries will not be returned, once the winners have been decided all other entries will be destroyed along with entrance details in accordance with GDPR. 
  4. Photographs can be entered by email addressed to ‘Calendar Competition 2023’ to information@deencityfarm.co.uk or via Post; ‘Calendar Competition 2023’ Deen City Farm & Riding School, 39 Windsor Avenue, London, SW19 2RR.  
  5. Physical copy photographs should be no smaller than 7x5 inches and no larger than an A4 piece of paper.  
  6. Electronic copy photographs should be submitted as JPEGs or PDF and be no larger than 10MB. Files larger than this may be rejected by our email server.  
  7. When entering a photograph, please provide your name, contact details including an email address and tell us the story behind your photograph, including when & where it was taken.  

Subject: 

  1. Photographs must have been taken at Deen City Farm & Riding School, either at the Aberdeen Road site between 1978 - 1980, Batsworth Road 1980 - 1994 or at the current Windsor Avenue site.  
  2. You must have permission to submit your photo from all identifiable individuals featured before entering the competition.  
  3. Do not do anything to injure or distress animals or cause damage to the environment when taking photographs. Any photos deemed to be in breach of this will be disqualified immediately.  

Judging, notification, and contact:  

  1. Deen City Farm will appoint judges to choose the winning entries. The organiser’s decision on all matters relating to the competition is final, and no correspondence will be entered into concerning the judging and organisation of the competition.  
  2. The competition closing date is Midnight on Monday 8th August 2022.   
  3. The winners will be announced on Deen City Farm’s social media and also  

    contacted directly via email no later than Wednesday 7th September 2022. 

  4. The prize for the winners of the competition is to have their photograph featured in the calendar and one copy of the calendar when it is published. There is no substitute prize available, financial reward or cash alternative. The winners must also agree for their photograph to be displayed at Deen City Farm, during the 45 year anniversary celebrations. 

Disclaimer: 

  1. The organiser’s reserve the right to cancel the competition at any stage, if deemed necessary or due to unforeseen circumstances out of the organiser’s control. The organisers reserve the right to remove a winner’s entry from the final calendar if they are found to be in breach of the terms and conditions at any time.  
on Help Us Latest News The Farm

Please help replace our animal shelters

Please help us to replace the seven large animal shelters in our back field's. The shelters are currently old, with holes in the roofs and no sides. New weather proof shelters will provide much needed protection from the Great British weather.

Our animals are the main focus of all our activities, and we would like to give them the best possible accommodation, making sure they are comfortable and protected.

We have a selection of larger animals including our miniature donkeys, Mackenzie and McCoy, our flock of Zwartbles sheep and our selection of goats including, Jet the Anglo-Nubian. At night they all have warm and cosy shelters in our yard, during the day they graze out in the paddocks.

A covered shelter is important both on hot days for shade and during cold/winter days to protect them from the wind and rain.

At the moment, the shelters in the back fields desperately need to be replaced: they are old, they do not have sides and the roofs leak. To make matters worse two of the shelters lost part of their roofs due to Storm Eunice.

The fields are very exposed and replacing the shelters with ones that have three sides will provide a dry space in rain, shade in the sun and warmth in the cold to make their enclosures more welcoming and fit for purpose.

Our fundraising target of £5800 will buy the raw materials for our onsite team to craft the new structures. The seven shelters will be built with a strong timber framework and clad in shatterproof recycled plastic eco sheets.

Please donate today to help us continue to provide the best possible environment for our beautiful animals.

on Help Us Latest News

Trustee Vacancy – Treasurer

The Trustees wish to appoint as a volunteer trustee a Treasurer to be responsible for the financial well-being, strategy, and financial administration of the charity and specifically to lead in the Trustees’ duty to ensure that proper accounting records are kept, financial resources are properly controlled and disbursed in line with good governance, legal and regulatory requirements. 

Main Duties and Responsibilities 

We are looking for a Treasurer who can maintain an overview of the financial affairs of the organisation and ensure that they are legal, constitutional and in accordance with accepted accounting practice. The Treasurer supports internal staff who complete the accounting work, and who are in turn supported by a local firm of external accountants. Reviews of the accounting records are undertaken quarterly. We are particularly interested in hearing from candidates who have a knowledge of VAT and charity finance.

In addition the Treasurer has the following duties and responsibilities: 

  • Make fellow Board members aware of their financial obligations and take a lead in interpreting and presenting financial data to them.
  • Ensure proper records are kept and that effective financial procedures and controls are in place, including:  
    • Cheque signatories
    • Purchasing limits and systems
    • Payroll actions, including salary payments, PAYE and NI payments
    • Pensions
    • Any other records required, as appropriate 
  • Appraising the financial viability of plans, proposals and feasibility studies

PERSONAL SPECIFICATION

  • Knowledge of and interest in animals and community farms is desirable.
  • An accountancy qualification.
  • Candidates who are local are desirable, but it is essential that you are able to travel to the farm for meetings, events and the odd day of volunteering.

COMMITMENT

The Board meets every other month, and the Treasurer would additionally be expected to spend a few hours a month engaging with Board business, attending events and supporting fundraising activities. 

HOW TO APPLY

For more information on being a trustee or to apply please contact Henry Nelless, Chair of Trustees, on chair@deencityfarm.co.uk 

For a tour of the farm or information on the our work please contact Emma King, General Manager, on manager@deencityfarm.co.uk

 

ABOUT DEEN CITY FARM

Deen City Farm and Riding School is an urban farm with an educational focus in the heart of the London Borough of Merton. With over 60,000 visitors a year, our five-acre site includes a farmyard, gardens, riding school, shop, café and small playground. As well as welcoming visitors who want to meet the animals and enjoy the setting, we also work with local schools and community groups to fulfil our charitable aim of improving the lives of everyone in the community. Volunteering is at the heart of the project and we also provide a work experience programme. 

Deen City Farm is a limited company as well as a registered charity. 

The Board of Trustees provides strategic direction and leadership to the organisation. It acts as the guardian of the charity’s vision and supports the staff team. 

on Help Us

Vacancy: Trustee Treasurer

We are recruiting for a new trustee treasurer to join our Board of Trustees! As a charity we are governed by a Board of Trustees, who are ultimately responsible for the running of the farm and play an active role in any big decisions made at Deen City Farm. They bring a wide variety of skills and knowledge to the farm, and act somewhat similar to Company Directors! 

You can read more about our current trustees on our website here.

You can view more information about the role, details on how to apply and a downloadable job description on our vacancies page. 

on Help Us

Toilet Refurbishment / Better Bogs Appeal!

Please Note: the Farm’s toilets will be out of use between July 5th and 22nd. temporary toilets are located on the drive by the chicken area, with a disabled access toilet in the staff parking bays.

bb2

Thanks to the support from Asda Foundation and eBay, we’ve managed to raise around £32k towards a refurbishment of the Farm’s public toilets.

We’re now appealing to our visitors and supporters to help us raise the final £3k so that the work can be carried out before the summer holidays. Click the link to learn more and donate today!

Better Bogs Appeal