Farm offering alternative social care for vulnerable adults in heart of the Sperrins

Deep in the heart of the Sperrin mountains Butterlope farm offers a different experience, when it comes to farming.

It is a social farm, which provides an alternative to those in need of social care. This may be adults with learning needs or people recovering from, or experiencing mental health problems.

The farm is one of 16 such farms across Northern Ireland, providing 30 sessions a week for 103 people.

Padraig Quinn says he has been coming to the farm for years: "I started here nine years ago and I love it and I've got more experience with the sheep so far at the farm.

"It is just good to get out of the house when you have got nothing to do, two days a week on Monday and Wednesday."

Vinnie and Annie Mullan have ran this social farm since 2015 and says Butterlope takes on those with mental health issues and adults with learning disabilities.

Those involved in the scheme come on a permanent basis, with 12 people coming in up t0 three days a week. They help with feeding and herding the sheep and feeding the ducks and hens, as well as picking up any eggs they hatch.

Butterlope operates as a fully functional farm, alongside providing the social service, but Vinnie Mullan says he would not have it any other way: "You can see the people who come here get a lot of good out of it.

"You just see them and they are buzzing when they come here and it is good to get the help aswell!

"There is a sense of achievement when you can watch and you can see people happy, happy at their work and we have a big group of people, there is a lot of people benefitting from it."

This week marks Social Farming Awarness Week, an event created by the charity Rural Support, which set up the scheme almost 10 years ago.

Aoibeann Walsh is head of Social Farming and Innovation, she hopes this week will encourage more farms to become part of the project.

"This is our third social farming awarness week, so really it is about raising awareness about social farming, what it can offer people, both the farmers who can deliver the service and for individuals who can come out with the support need and benefit from the engagement.

"Absolutely we just want to get the word out to tell people how wonderful the farms are."

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