Published: 13 July 2005
School Farm Visits
The first farm has been accredited as suitable for school visits under a national scheme to increase schools' access to farmland and provide safe, educational places for farmland and countryside teaching.
At the Royal Show, Rural Affairs Minister Jim Knight awarded England's first certificate of farm premises accreditation under the Countryside Educational Visits Accreditation Scheme (CEVAS) to Ed Dee for his Northamptonshire farm.
Mr Knight commented that visiting farmland increased students' interest and helped them learn more about food and farming, rural life, and caring for the countryside.
He said:
"We want to make it easier for children to get the full benefits of visiting farmland.
This accreditation scheme means that teachers can choose farms with confidence, and farmers have the skills to help the children get the most from their visits."
Mr Knight said that to get more children visiting farms, it needed to:
- be easier for teachers to arrange farm visits, and
- for teachers to be more confident in using farming and horticulture units to deliver the National Curriculum.
He continued:
"Teachers have reported barriers to farm visits that include concerns about health and safety, a lack of information about educational opportunities on farms, and difficulty finding suitable farms close to the school.
This program aims to bring the countryside into the classroom through all parts of the curriculum - from science and geography to art and music."
The scheme will ultimately lead to a
single national database of recognised, approved farms and farmers, giving assurance to teachers and schools visiting the countryside that they will get the most from their farm visits.
CEVAS was developed by
Farming and Countryside Education (FACE), in partnership with Defra, the Countryside Agency, and DfES, and is administered by the Access to Farms partnership.
Mr Knight also awarded a certificate of accreditation to work with school groups to Tina Miller, who is the 300th farmer to complete the three-unit training course through the Open College Network.
Through the individual accreditation scheme, farmers complete three one-day courses in:
- preparing for farm visits;
- food, farming and the countryside in the National Curriculum; and
- talking to pupils, students and teachers.
Once accredited, a farm receives a certificate, a logo to use for promotional purposes, and a listing on the 'Teachernet' website. Accredited farms are inspected bi-annually.
The training is supported by funding from Defra's England Rural Development Programme and the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund.
Further information
Farming and Countryside Education (FACE) is run by a partnership of organisations including the National Trust, the NFU, the Royal Agricultural Society of England, Waitrose, and the Country Land and Business Association.
TeacherNet - Countryside Educational Visits Accreditation Scheme (CEVAS)
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