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Fishers Mobile Farm - we bring our farm to you!
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FAQ

Fishers Mobile Farm - pig n dog mooching

FAQs

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    1. How much space do you need?
    2. Do you need your car(s) & trailer(s) next to the site
    3. Are your staff experienced?
    4. Do you have Public Liability Insurance?
    5. Do you have a Risk Assessment?
    6. Should I be worried about e-coli?
    7. What do we need to provide?
    8. What do you bring with you?
    9. What animals can you bring with you?
    10. How big should school visiting groups be & how long does each group need?
    11. How many pupils can you see in a day?
    12. Can you do multi-day visits?
    13. Can the children touch all the animals?
    14. Can children handle our animals?
    15. How do you clean up after yourselves?
    16. How long do you need to set up & clean up?
    17. How many Mobile Farm staff accompany each visit?
    18. Do your staff have CRB checks?
    19. What age group is your farm visit for?
    20. How far will you travel?
    21. What sorts of clients have you had?
    22. What sort of places have you been to?
    23. Which other schools & nurseries have you been to?
    24. What about DEFRA regulations?
    25. Are your animals & premises inspected by Animal Health Inspectors?
    26. Do you have an animal welfare policy?
    27. How much will it cost?
    28. How do we book?
    29. What happens if we need to cancel?
    30. What happens if it rains?
    31. Are you able to provide any additional learning activities?
    32. Can we take photographs?
    33. Do you have a sustainability policy?
    34. Can wheelchairs access the mobile farm?
    35. Are there any equality or diversity issues?
    36. Who is responsible for supervising the children?
    37. What happens during breaks & lunch times?
    38. Can parents/guardians meet the animals?
    39. Do you have learning objectives, outcomes &/or lesson plans?
    40. What happens during a typical visit by a class to the Mobile Farm?
    41. Can schools obtain copies of the slides & other material used during Mobile Farm visits?

     

    1. How much space do you need?

We can set up on grass, on tarmac or on concrete; in the open, under cover or for small events indoors.  

We can generally adapt ourselves to most places & spaces but will need space to park our vehicle(s) & trailer(s) & access to walk equipment & animals to the event site.

If there is limited access to your site please contact us to discuss.

Please also note that if we are bringing our pig we will also need to have our livestock trailer actually at the event site.

Click here for a typical layout for a single trailer event.
Click here for a typical layout for a double trailer event.

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  1. Do you need your car(s) & trailer(s) next to the site?

We carry essential equipment in our trailers & cars, so we need them close by. In case an animal is ill or stressed, we may need to be able to confine them to our trailer if necessary.  

We have calculated our costs on setting up & clearing away on the presumption we don’t have to carry animal pens, gazebos, water, feed or lead/carry our animals too far to the site.

Please also note that if we are bringing our pig we will also need to have our livestock trailer actually at the event site as the pig gets displayed inside the trailer.

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  • Are your staff experienced?

We have a core of part-time staff, all who have extensive experience in managing animals & in talking about animals to both children & adults. Which staff will attend will depend upon staff availability & the nature of the event. 

Key members of staff include:
Richard - a graduate of Bristol University & has years of teaching experience gained in private industry.
Liz - who has worked as a graphic artist, a support worker & also has a Cert Ed & has worked as a tutor for Runshaw & Lancashire Colleges. Liz has also achieved CEVAS certification with regards to teaching children about food, farming & the countryside.
Ben - who is a practising farmer who also teaches at Myerscough College. 
Rachel - who is a graduate of UCLAN & has extensive experience in working with people with learning difficulties.
Helen - who also has extensive experience in working with SEN groups.
Becky - as well as working with the Mobile Farm, is a qualified riding instructor for children & adults & a recognised show judge, travelling round the country to County shows.

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  • Do you have Public Liability Insurance?

Yes, we have Public Liability Insurance for £5 million.

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  • Do you have a Risk Assessment?

Yes, you can download our Risk Assessment from our School's Page.

We also give a quick safety talk to all groups of children when on school/nursery visits before they come into contact with the animals.

We also ask that teachers to go through the “Dos & Don’ts” with the children prior to our visit.

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  • Should I be worried about e-Coli?

With regards to the specific risks presented by e-Coli we ensure that we are aware & follow the latest advice contained within the Industry Code of Practice.
To download their guidance notes with the specific supplement for teachers please click here.

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  • What do we need to provide?

The Mobile Farm comes pretty self contained & doesn’t normally require anything but occasionally we may require access to a cold water tap. 

Most importantly Schools & nurseries will need to:
Provide teachers &/or teaching assistants to accompany each visiting group.
Provide hand washing facilities & supervision to ensure pupils wash their hands after their visits. (Note: we can provide mobile sinks if necessary – these are not normally practical for school visits)
Ensure pupils with allergies are appropriately protected.
Ensure any pupils with cuts or grazes have them covered with waterproof plasters prior to visiting the farm.
Confirm there is no livestock (cows, sheep, goats or pigs) present at the venue & also that the venue does not have a County Parish Holding (CPH) number.

Private bookings (e.g. birthday parties or christenings) will need to:
Provide responsible adult(s) to supervise the children.
Provide hand washing facilities. (Note: we can provide mobile sinks if necessary for outside public events, an extra charge will apply)
Ensure children with allergies are appropriately protected.
Ensure children with cuts or grazes have them covered with waterproof plasters prior to visiting the farm.
Confirm there is no livestock (cows, sheep, goats or pigs) present at the venue & also that the venue does not have a County Parish Holding (CPH) number.

Public bookings (e.g. shops, fetes, fayres etc) will need to:
Provide hand washing facilities. (Note: we can provide mobile sinks if necessary for outside public events, an extra charge will apply)
Confirm there is no livestock (cows, sheep, goats or pigs) present at the venue & also that the venue does not have a County Parish Holding (CPH) number.

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  • What do you bring with you?

Together with the animals we bring:
Pens (sheep hurdles), animal feed, cages for the poultry & rabbits, gazebos, display boards & information boards, hand washing gel, tarpaulins, straw, hay, animal bedding, duck pool, sacks of wool etc.

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  • What animals can you bring with you?

Depending upon the nature of the event & the time of year,  we can bring any, or all, of the following animals:

Donkey
Miniature Pony
Cow or Calf
Sheep & Lambs (breeds may vary)
Boer Goats
Pygmy Goats
Pig
Ducks (various breeds)
Chickens & Cockerels
Bantam Hens
Chicks
Giant rabbits (Possibly with babies)
Lop eared rabbits (Possibly with babies)
Turkeys

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  • How big should school visiting groups be & how long does each group need?

For schools we have found that it is often better to split the pupils into groups of 10 to 15 & schedule visits of about 30 minute durations for younger children & 45 minutes for the older groups - but how you split your classes is your decision & we are happy to go along with whatever is best for you, your staff & children.

For schools we also normally conduct a ‘tour’ of all the animals for each group & with a commentary appropriate for the age group, however with older children it is sometimes better to let them wander around & ask questions.

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  • How many pupils can you see in a day?

The following answers assume a typical school day (9am start, a short break at lunch & finish at 3pm) & assumes 15 children in a group & a short break in between each group.

Single trailer events:
We would suggest an average of 30 minutes per visit (slightly longer for older children & slightly shorter for nursery children seems to work best). This means we could get through 8 groups a day or about 120 children in total.  As there are a minimum of 2 Mobile Farm staff, groups can overlap slightly if one group is slightly slower than scheduled.

Double trailer events:
We would suggest an average of 40 minutes per visit (slightly longer for older children & slightly shorter for nursery children seems to work best) but could have 2 sets of children going around at a time. This means we could get through 14 groups a day or about 210 children in total.  As there are a minimum of 3 Mobile Farm staff, groups can overlap slightly if one group is slightly slower than scheduled.

The timings & numbers of children are only suggested guidelines & schools can alter these as they see fit.

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  • Can you do multi-day visits?

Yes, for larger schools this may be a more suitable option. Providing we are sited in a secure area where we can leave things overnight, we can normally make a small discount to our standard daily rates for multi-day vists.

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  • Can the children touch or handle the animals?

We encourage children to stroke & touch our animals & to feel their fur/feathers/hair/skin/horn etc. However we do normally not let children ‘pick up’ the animals during school visits, but we can make special arrangements if required (e.g. children or adults with special needs or limited mobility).

All our animals are very friendly & are completely used to meeting visitors, however, some animals have very sharp teeth & may mistake fingers for food! Please ensure children are told not to feed any of our animals & are told not to put their fingers near the animals’ mouths – especially the pig, the pony, the donkey & our rabbits.

Also, please be aware that goats may nibble clothing, hair & anything else they can reach!

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  • How do you clean up after your visit?

If we are set up on tarmac or concrete then we will normally put tarpaulins down underneath the animals to contain their bedding & reduce contamination from animal waste. We will also sweep up after the visit & if possible we will also vacuum the area. We also normally apply disinfectant to the area prior to us leaving.  As far as is practicable animal faeces are removed from the animals’ pens as the day progresses. We take all this animal waste away with us.

If we are set up on grass we will normally have the animals direct on the grass. After the event we will sweep, rake or vacuum the area.  If necessary we also ‘water in’ any remaining traces of our visits. It should be noted that it is often easy to see where we have been on grass because the grass has all been eaten down in the penned areas & if it is wet, there may be muddy foot-prints.

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  • How long do you need to set up & clean up?

We need 60 to 90 minutes to set up prior to the arrival of the first group of visitors. We can normally clear up in about 60 minutes.

If access if particularly difficult these times may increase & our prices will alter accordingly.

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  • How many Mobile Farm staff accompany each visit?

A single animal type visit will have a single member of staff. 
A single trailer visit will be accompanied by 2 or 3 Mobile Farm staff.
A double trailer visit will have 3 or 4 Mobile Farm staff.

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  • Do your staff have CRB checks?

We all have CRB checks. However no unaccompanied children can be left with Mobile Farm staff as the children are always the responsibility of the school, nursery staff, parents etc depending on the booking.

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  • What age group is your farm visit for?

We have found that farm visits are a valuable & enjoyable experience for all ages, cultures & abilities. The educational visits can be structured around specific subjects & ages whilst the social visits are great for simply bringing young children & farm animals together in a safe & friendly environment.

Information on how our farm visits work alongside the key National Curriculum units can be found on our Schools Page.

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  • How far will you travel?

We have visited schools, nurseries & businesses across Lancashire, Merseyside, Greater Manchester & into parts of Cheshire & Yorkshire.

Click here to see an approximate map of the area we cover.

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  • What sorts of clients have you had?

We have worked for local councils, schools, nurseries, museums, universities, charities, shopping centres, garden centres, retail outlets, public houses, health & leisure clubs, care homes, residents groups, children’s centres.

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  • What sort of places have you been to?

The Mobile Farm has been set up at primary schools, nurseries, secondary schools, universities, public houses, public parks, museums, shops, retail centres, wildlife reserves, health & leisure clubs & care homes.

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  • Which schools, nurseries & other public venues have you been to?

Busy Bodies Nursery, Burnley Wood Children's Centre, Atherton St Georges Primary School, Busy Bodies Nursery, Sarah's Ark Nursery, Busy Bees Ashton House, Lowton J & I Primary School, Primrose Hill After School & Holiday Club, Tottington High School, Grosvenor Rd Primary School Swinton, Parkview Community School, Irk Valley Community School, Pikefold Primary School Blackley, Freckleton Pre-School, Mesne Lea Primary Walkden, St Andrew's Nursery Group Leyland, Wade Hall Children's Centre, Wellfield Children's Centre, Botany Bay, Buckshaw Village Community Centre, Edge Hill University, Creative Support, The Deans Primary School, Crab Lane Primary School, Christchurch C of E Primary School, Hillside Nursery School, Bradley Primary School, Chorley Council Playday, Lancashire Wildlife Trust, HomeStart, Penwortham Fun Day , Wood Fold Early Birds - Standish, Appley Bridge Village Hall, Camberwell Park, Platt Bridge Nursery, Appletree Nursery School, English Martyrs, St Margarets Mary's Infants, The Valley Community School, Kidz2gether, Moss Side County Primary School, Deeplish Primary School, St Margaret's C of E School, Lammack Primary School, Claremont Primary School, All Saints C of E Primary School, High Legh Garden Centre, Victoria Gallery Museum Liverpool, St Georges Shopping Centre Preston, Lady Green Garden Centre, St. Peter’s RC Primary, Rossendale Primary, Lowton Saint Marys, All Saints Primary School Rochdale, St Hildas C of E Primary Oldham, Medlock Valley Community School, Our Lady & St Edwards Primary School, Willowtree Primary Salford, Stoneygate Nursery, Kings Road Primary School, Golborne Community Primary School & Nursery, Bromley Cross Summer Fayre, St Mary's RC Primary School Middleton,  Lady Green Garden Centre, St. Edmund's R.C. Primary School , Seymour Park Primary, All Saints Primary, Whitegate Children's Centre, Busy Bees Lancaster, Iqra Education Centre, Abram C of E Primary School, St Phillips CE Primary, Evergreen Children’s' Day Nursery, Wilmslow Garden Centre, The Ryleys Preparatory School, St James Primary School, Farnworth, St Anne's & St Joseph's Primary School, Hamer Community Primary School, Lea Pre School Preston, Castle Hill Primary Bolton, St Bartholomew's CE Primary, Blackbrook St Mary's Catholic Primary, Springside School, New Greenhall Atherton, St Luke's C E Primary School, St Chad's RC Primary School, Astley Park Chorley Council Family Day, St Mary's C of E Moston, Meadowbank Primary School, St Cecilia's Catholic Infant School, Party in Moor Park - Preston Children's Centre, All Hallows Business, Enterprise & Sports College, Busy Bees Holmes Chapel, Woodsend Community Group , Busy Bees Chorley, Bamber Bridge Children's Centre, Rose & Crown Ulnes Walton, Ince C of E Primary School, Dog & Partridge Charnock Richard, Beechville care Home, Sankey Valley, St. James CE VA Primary School, St Mary Magdalens Accrington, Heskin Hall, Burscough Wharf.

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  • What about DEFRA regulations?

We have a ‘Disapply License' that allows us to take our livestock to schools without having a ‘stand-down’ period after every visit.

We will complete all the DEFRA paper work & register all the animal movements with DEFRA.

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  • Are your animals & premises inspected by Animal Health Inspectors?

Yes. We have annual inspections.

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  • Do you have an animal welfare policy?

Yes. Please click here to see our animal welfare policy.

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  • How much will it cost?

We offer a variety of options to try & best meet your needs & the prices vary accordingly. 
A simple short visit with a single animal type can start from as little as £160. 
A single trailer event starts at £340 for 2 hours & ranges up to £500 for a 6 hour school day.
Double trailer events start at £750 for 3 hours & go up to £915 for a 6 hour school day. 
These prices exclude travel costs

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  • How do we book?

In the first instance phone or email us & we will contact you to discuss your needs. We will then send you a booking confirmation form with details of the chosen option, price etc.

Return of this document to us confirms which option you would like & forms the agreement between us around the cost, content, date & timing of the event.

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  • What happens if we need to cancel?

In the event of us cancelling we will refund any moneys paid.
If you cancel with at least a month’s notice no fee is payable & we will refund any moneys already paid.
If you cancel with less than one month but more than one day notice, a cancellation fee of £50 is payable.
If you cancel with less than 24 hour’s notice, a charge of £100 is payable.

We reserve the right to reschedule the visit, or change the animals we bring with us in the event of DEFRA movement restrictions.  
Also, due to animals being unpredictable, we cannot guarantee that the animals that we bring on the day will exactly match the ones detailed above.
In the event of unforeseen circumstances, we reserve the right to substitute other animals or otherwise amend the list on the day.

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  • What happens if it rains?

We bring pop up gazebos which can be erected very quickly.

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  • Are you able to provide any additional learning activities?

Yes, if time permits & the activities are booked, agreed & planned for in advance we can provide additional learning activities such as:

Looking at wool, wool processing & wool products
Butter making
Understanding the food chain from farm to dinner plate
Crafts using wool such as felting
More in depth discussion of aspects of farming or of the animal’s life-cycle.

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  • Can we take photographs?

We are happy for you to take & use photos of our staff, equipment & animals for any purpose. It will be up to the school to determine its own policy & get appropriate permissions to photograph their children.  Unless we are asked not to, the Mobile Farm may take photos of the event but will not use any photograph containing children’s faces without the express permission of the school concerned.

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  • Do you have a sustainability policy?

Yes we have a sustainability policy. You can find it on our Schools Page.

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  • Can wheelchairs access the mobile farm?

We can normally set up the Mobile Farm in such a way that wheelchair users can access the farm.

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  • Are there any equality or diversity issues?

You will need to let us know if you would prefer that we did not bring certain animals to the event, e.g. the pig.

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  • Who is responsible for supervising the children?

The school, (teachers, parents, guardians etc) are responsible for supervising any children.  The Mobile Farm staff will supervise the animals.

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  • What happens during breaks & lunch times?

The Mobile Farm staff will remain with the animals during breaks & lunch periods.  If schools wish to utilise these times to organise other activities (e.g. letting other children have a brief look at the animals) then this can normally be accommodated, but please let us know in advance so that we can prepare.

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  • Can parents meet the animals?

When we are setting up the farm in the morning or dismantling the farm after school it is important that other people are excluded from the areas as far as possible. This is normally achieved using plastic tape barriers which we can provide.  Failure to do this can result in it taking longer for us to set up and not being ready for the first classes.  It is often a good idea if a school can provide a teacher or other responsible adult to supervise the area during set-up & dismantling.

If schools would like parents to be able to meet the animals too (& we have found that this has usually been very popular with parents & children) then this should be by organised sessions planned in advance.  However, please note that Environmental Health considerations mean that near-by hand washing facilities must be made available to parents who should be told that hand washing is mandatory after touching any animals.  If schools wish to organise such sessions then please discuss this with us.

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  • Do you have learning objectives, outcomes &/or lesson plans?

Once a school has booked they will be sent a password to get to the School's Page on our web site from which standard sets of learning objectives, outcomes & standard lesson plans can be downloaded. (These documents are in pdf format, if you would like Word documents, please ask.) These are generic documents & cover not just what may be expected from our visit, but what schools may do before & after our visit.  The responsibility for customising these & setting objectives & outcomes & for assessing the end results, rests with the teachers & school. 

What we can cover during a visit by a class to the Mobile Farm will depend upon how long we have with the class, how old they are & how well behaved they are, but will be based upon this standard set. If a school has any objectives for a particular class which are not part of our set then please discuss this with us in advance & we will seek to address them.

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  • What happens during a typical visit by a class to the mobile farm?

When the class come out to the farm a member of the staff will welcome them and give them brief safety instructions. We will then take them around the animals in small groups which will take between 20 minutes and an hour depending upon how long we have with the class.  What we will say will depend upon time available and class age/abilities but typically we will try to cover the at least following (depending upon which animals we have brought with us):

Show them the sheep, let the class feel the sheep, feel the wool, talk about what we get from wool, feel the lambs, watch the lambs drink from their mother, discuss the names of the animals (sheep/lamb/ewe), show that the sheep only has the bottom teeth typical of a ruminant. Show a shepherds crook and how it is used.

Show them the calf, let the class feel/stroke the calf, talk about what we get from the dairy calf, talk about what we make from milk, talk about how old the calf is, how big it will grow, how much milk it will make, watch it chew cud of feed, show it’s ruminant teeth, show its cloven hooves

Show them the goats, let the class feel the goats and stroke them, feel the hard goats horns, watch the baby goats feed, discuss the names (goats/nanny/billy/kids), talk about why goats may be farmed.

Show the class the donkey and pony. Let them stroke them. Warn about strong jaws and big teeth top and bottom. Differentiate between donkey and pony (big ears/small ears etc). Talk about their uses. Show a horse shoe.

Show the class a giant rabbit. Discuss how rabbits were introduced to this country and used to be bred for food. If present, let the class stroke baby rabbits.

Show the class the larger poultry and eggs. Discuss how a chicken hatches eggs. Let the class see different breeds of chickens and feel their feathers. Point out some of the differences. Discuss the noises chickens and cockerels make. Show a cock’s spur.

Show the class bantam chickens and compare with the big ones. Let the class view and feel some of the fancier looking breeds.

Show the class the ducks and let them feel the soft down. Let them feel the hard beaks and webbed feet. Show how the duck has waterproof feathers. Look at a duck egg.

Show the class any recently hatched little chicks growing up and show how these will grow into the bigger chickens.

At the end of the visit we will thank the class for visiting, ask them if they have any questions and/or ask them some questions about what they have seen and remind them about washing their hands.

Occasionally, with the agreement of the teachers concerned and particularly with older groups, we will suggest a free for all where the children can go to the animals they are interested in and ask questions about them or, if they are quiet, be asked questions about the animals by our staff

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  • Can schools obtain copies of the slides & other material used during Mobile Farm visits?

Yes, we can make available copies of all our material together with links to other useful material available on the internet. Please ask if you would like a CD containing copies of this material, or you can download documents from the Schools Page on our website (password required).

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We bring our farm animals to schools, nurseries, fayres, family days & promotions across the whole of the North West including Greater Manchester, Liverpool & Merseyside & the whole of Lancashire. For education or for pleasure, our mobile petting farm is a great attraction for young & old, town or country - we can bring our country farm into your urban area.
We also have our beautiful reindeer, Vecko & Matti, for Festive Mobile Farm visits

Fishers Mobile Farm - we bring our farm to you!

Ben Heaps
Fishers Mobile Farm,
Four Lane Ends Farm, Preston Road,
Charnock Richard PR7 5LF

T: 07714 917 979  
info@mobilefarm.biz

Our animals would love to meet you!