Horticulture Volunteer

Ouseburn Farm is a charity and working community farm in the urban heart of Newcastle upon Tyne. Our story started in 1976 when parents from Byker took over a plot of land on the site where the Farm is now. They wanted their children to have access to nature, to grow their own food and take care of animals. We are now a registered charity and remain true to our origins, giving over 40,000 visitors a year the opportunity to learn about the origins of food and care for nature through engagement with farm life.

We are also a care farm and our placement programme for autistic adults and adults with learning disabilities and difficulties is central to our work. We help our placements to learn new skills and connect with nature, each other and their community through meaningful activity in our farmyard, gardens, kitchen, café and visitor centre.

All activities are inspired by and take place in and around our working farmyard, gardens, on site café (run by Smile for Life Children’s Charity) and popular visitor centre. 

As a Horticulture Volunteer, you will be required to ‘get your hands dirty.’

You will be involved in

• weeding,
• planting and
• harvesting our plants, crops and fruit trees. The seasonal nature of this role will determine what needs to happen when This is all carried out under the guidance of our Horticulturist.
• General upkeep and maintenance can also form part of this role.

Skills

• Caring and positive nature
• Ability to volunteer as part of a team
• Reliability and flexibility to volunteer on a range of tasks
• Willing to commit to this role for at least 6 months for a minimum of one 2 hour session per week
• Experience of working, volunteering or studying in a horticultural/gardening environment (desirable but not essential)
• Experience of working or volunteering in a community setting (desirable but not essential)