by Rebecca Hannant
A Hedon-based petting farm, animal rescue and education centre is appealing for donations to help it continue its work.
Since July 2020, Little Haven Farm has been rescuing animals and helping to educate children. It offers a range of family-friendly activities throughout the year, including Easter egg hunts, Christmas events, and more. Its animals include goats, sheep, pigs, turkeys, and more.
Owner Suzie Wright said: “The farm has become an asset for the community.
“There aren’t many places like this where people can come and spend time with the animals.
“It has such a positive impact on people’s mental health. We have really seen the difference that spending time here can have on children, young people, and adults.”
However, the farm is considered a non-profit organisation, which means that its funding streams are limited, and it relies on donations from visitors.
Suzie said that, in recent months, the farm had struggled because of work, life, and family illness, and appealed for donations to help ensure that the attraction continues to remain open.
She added: “My husband’s just been diagnosed with advanced-stage prostate cancer. He has been on hand when I haven’t been around, but unfortunately, he isn’t well enough to be at the farm now.
“We are doing a fundraiser to raise money to help look after the animals in our care.
“The funds will allow us to keep doing what we’re doing while we can restructure the operation and apply for other streams of income.”
“We have received lots of support from people – not just financial, but even people just giving their time has been massively appreciated.
“We’ve got people from the community who are coming together to help build a subcommittee of the farm.
“They’re coming in and helping me to try and manage things, because obviously when you’re running something like this, it’s not just the looking after the animals themselves, which is a big enough job in itself.”
Funds raised will go towards looking after the animals, including feed, bedding, general care, and veterinary bills, as well as the overheads for the farm.
Suzie said: “We are extremely grateful for all the support we have received so far. It means the absolute world to all of us.
“We love every one of our animals. We want to be here for them and for the community, and with people’s help and support that they’ve given so far, it will make such a huge difference.”
To donate, visit shorturl.at/S2Nfb or see littlehaven.farm for more information.