Sometimes we all just need a bit of green. With these farms, you don’t need to leave the city in order to immerse yourself in the great outdoors. Whether you’re looking for animals, nature-orientated activities, or just a bit of peace and quiet, these sites will change your perception of what cities around the UK can offer.
Ouseburn Farm, Newcastle
East of Newcastle city centre, Ouseburn Farm is an “explosion of natural colour” bursting out of the “monochrome of the city’s tarmac and concrete”, said Patrick Barkham in The Guardian. “Rowan trees dripping with orange berries, purple verbena, sunflowers, sedum, nasturtiums” – all catch the eye here.
Since its inception more than 50 years ago, the “deeply tranquil” farm has been free for visitors, and also currently provides important work experience for adults with learning difficulties. While some city farms may be for show, Ouseburn is also a fully working farm, supplying vegetables to the “hip” restaurant next door, which sponsors the farm.
Hackney City Farm, London
Situated between Broadway Market and Columbia Road, Hackney City Farm offers a “more peaceful respite for ambling market-goers”, said Rhian Daly in Time Out. It’s become a “fashionable stop-off” in the area, thanks in part to Frizzante, the wholesome on-site Italian café.
The farm is “thriving with happy animals” and there is a pottery studio and garden to explore. It is also a “vital community hub” providing a vegetable box collection scheme for locals and a range of educational courses on low-impact living and beekeeping, as well as practical courses for asylum seekers and refugees.
Poole Farm, Plymouth
Walking around this “unique” farm is “almost like stepping back in time”, said Katie Oborn on Plymouth Live. Despite the proximity to busy main roads, the “impressive woodland carpet of bluebells and wild garlic” is in bloom and “livestock happily graze” in this “haven for wildlife”. Upon arrival visitors are “greeted by a chorus of birdsong” from the surrounding Derriford Community Park, which is open to the public. Streams run through the farm with “crystal clear” water, against the “peaceful” backdrop of lowing cows. Be sure to visit the Beaver Lookout, an “aptly named spot with a view of the river and its resident beavers”.
Meanwood Valley Urban Farm, Leeds
Meanwood began life in 1980, operating from “two old caravans and today manages a site of 26 acres”, said Sarah McPherson on Discover Wildlife. For curious children, the wooded areas provide the ideal “minibeast-friendly” habitats to explore, and are regularly visited by school groups. Wildlife can be found in all directions, with kestrels up above, and intriguing smooth newts and white-clawed crayfish in the stream running through the heart of the farm.
Spitalfields City Farm, London
“Thought Shoreditch was all about the vintage shops and trendy cafés? Wrong!” said Ellie Smith in Country and Town House. Mere minutes from the “hustle and bustle” of Brick Lane, you will find this fully functioning farm. The project began in 1978, originally as a community allotment site, but animals soon “joined the party”.
The “beautiful” green space supports many ventures, not only housing rare breeds from donkeys to parrots, but also hosting “Farm 2 Fork” family shows, where children can “sow and harvest food from the farm and learn how to cook it themselves”.
It’s not just the countryside that can provide the perfect urban escape
