We are a few weeks into the summer holidays. Term finished in July, the farm is quiet and most of the children and young people we work with are not due back until September.
The animals, of course, have not noticed any of this. They were fed at the usual time the morning after term ended, and every morning since.
That continuity is easy to overlook, but it is one of the most important things about how this provision works.
August at Stable Futures
A farm does not close for the holidays. Every day through August, members of our team are here. Feeds are made up and checked against each animal. Water is topped up again and again, because in this weather troughs and buckets empty faster than anyone expects. Stables are mucked out, hooves are picked, rugs and fly protection are checked and adjusted. Turnout is watched closely, since grass that has been scorched can come back rich after rain and needs managing with care.
The small animals are fed, cleaned and, just as importantly, handled. An animal who has had no human contact for six weeks is not much help to an anxious child in September, so all that holding and fussing through the holidays is part of getting ready for the new term rather than a nice extra.
The horticulture areas are tended throughout too. Growing does not pause for the school calendar either.
Routine Does Not Pause for The Holidays
Working with animals brings a discipline that is hard to find anywhere else.
A horse fed at seven expects to be fed at seven. Gates need to be secured properly. Water needs to be clean. None of this relaxes because it is the holidays or because the weather is difficult. The standard is set by the animal and it does not move.
That matters, because it is exactly the standard we hold ourselves to during term time. Many of the children referred to us have known adults who were inconsistent, unavailable or simply not there when it counted. They are not won over by promises of reliability. They work it out slowly, over months, by watching whether the thing that was promised actually happens.
Looking after the farm properly through August is part of that, even though there is nobody here to see it.
What Continuity Means in September
When a learner comes back in September, or arrives for the first time, they find the same animals, the same routines and the same faces.
For young people whose lives have been marked by disruption, that is a big thing. Six weeks is a long stretch when things at home are unsettled, and a good number of the children we support are used to places and people not being there when they go back to them.
Arriving somewhere that has carried on exactly as it was does a great deal of work before any session begins. It is not something that can be built in September. It has to have been there all summer.
Progress That Comes Back With Them
Alongside accredited outcomes through AQA, ASDAN, RDA and City and Guilds, we record progress in ways a mainstream setting might not.
A learner who would not go near a particular horse in the spring term walks straight over to her in September. A child with a long history of non-attendance asks to take on the morning feed, and then does it, day after day. A learner notices that a pony has lost condition over the summer before anyone on our team mentions it, which tells us a great deal about how much attention they are giving to something outside themselves.
These are not small moments. For young people who have been out of education for a long time, this is the groundwork that makes attendance, engagement and eventually qualifications possible.
None of it happens without the animals being here, settled and familiar, when everyone comes back.
Before the New Term
The farm will be busy again soon. The children coming back will pick up more or less where they left off, which is one of the best things about a provision built around animals and routine. Those arriving for the first time will spend their early weeks working out which horse is which and who to go to when they need something, and they will be given all the time they need to do it.
Until then, the work carries on quietly, as it has all summer.
Referrals for September
Stable Futures is Amegreen Children’s Services‘ alternative provision for children and young people aged 6 to 18, based on the West Berkshire and Hampshire border. We welcome referrals from schools and pupil referral units, local authorities, CAMHS, youth services, social care teams, post-16 providers and families across Berkshire, Hampshire and the surrounding counties.
If a referral is likely, we would love to talk now, even if the paperwork is not yet complete. To discuss a young person or arrange a visit, please get in touch. To proceed, please use our referrals page.
