Milestones

Milestones:

2024

  • Secured £5,773 support for our Tree Group via ‘Forest for Cornwall’ at Cornwall Council, to pay for 500 trees to complement the 300 raised in own tree nursery, extra facilities for our Tree Nursery expansion, signage and activities to create a new Nature Trail next year with a Lawnmower and LANTRA training donated via Medequip to maintain the Nature Trail pathways
  • Supported a ‘WellFed’ conference of health professionals and growers to find ways to improve nutrition for people with diabetes
  • Harvest Celebration Open Day (always held on the first Sunday in October)
  • Created a part-time Cookery Tutor role to better support volunteer activity days funded by the Health Improvement Fund (The Fund forms part of the broader Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Integrated Care Board (ICB) funding for the sector, being led and managed by Cornwall VSF and distributed via Cornwall Community Foundation.) and other health funding via Volunteer Cornwall in our role as the Community Hub for St Just
  • Hosted corporate volunteering away-days for staff from Sea Salt and the Job Centre
  • Participated in the Lafrowda Day parades with willow sculptures as well as holding our usual street stall
  • Delivered Tile-Making and Mosaic Workshops in partnership with ArtsWell for well-being and to brighten our community spaces
  • Began offering school visits (target of 25-30 by March 2025) funded by FIPL including Sennen Primary, St Just Primary, Newlyn Primary, Mounts Bay Academy, Penwith Wave Academy and Cape Cornwall School
  • Secured funding from Groundwork UK for an Energy Efficiency Survey of our buildings to be undertaken
  • Launched a podcast ‘Twist & Sprout’ to increase engagement and education
  • Added water-harvesting to our chicken sheds funded by SWW with support from Cape Cornwall School KITES Unit in July
  • Fenced two maincrop fields in Spring funded by FIPL
  • Created removable mesh panels in the doors of our tomato polytunnel to improve ventilation for the Summer Season
  • New outdoor salad beds created designed to better meet demand during the Hungry Gap
  • Introduced new, sustainable lines into the shop including freshly cut flowers
  • Designed and produced merchandise (mugs and tote bags) for sale in shop / markets
  • Advisory role established to assist staff at Cornwall Wildlife Trust with community engagement as part of the Landscape Recovery in the new SSSI (Site of Specific Scientific Interest)
  • Added extra features to our accessible toilet to make it ‘Stoma-Friendly’
  • Worked with academics and growers to map sustainable production within the Dutchy and to explore shared ordering from outside as well as distribution of value added products around Cornwall in a pilot project called ‘Join The Dots’
  • Worked with Volunteer Cornwall and Cape Cornwall surgery to explore possibilities of veg boxes on prescription
  • Updated website, WWOOF profile, created a linktree, a powerpoint presentation, sign-up forms and an online introductory ‘flipbook‘ to improve external communications
  • Issued two newsletters to supporters (Spring & Summer)
  • Expanded the wildflower project to supply plants to the Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens (as well as the National Trust and general public)
  • Installed a Water Cycle interpretation sign for site visitors funded by PLP
  • Created a window display for St Piran’s Day as well as attending the community parade as usual
  • Secured funds through VCSE & Volunteer Cornwall to support volunteers
  • Held two volunteer Induction Days in Feb and July
  • Held a careers information stall at Penwith College
  • Hosted a tour and talk for Partner Organisations and Referral Agencies in June
  • Held a stall at a Community Day in Penzance
  • Hosted two Dark Skies guided moth-watching events in June & July led by Ecologist Nick Taylor thanks to a £586 grant from St. Just Town Council 
  • Hosted a Scything workshop led by Scythe Kernow in June
  • Hosted a Summer Social for all our volunteers in July
  • Hosted one Cornish Hedging stile course delivered by CREST
  • Hosted one Creating Positive Energy workshop delivered by Change Innovators
  • Hosted several short permaculture courses in partnership with the WEA
  • Delivered a six week placement for a young adult via Learn Your Way
  • Secured funding in partnership with Arts Well for seasonal community arts events
  • Spring Open Day (always held on the Sunday before Easter weekend)
  • Outreach door-knocking and flyering in social housing estates in Feb
  • Tractor training, First Aid and Fire Safety Training renewed
  • Secured £750 funding from St. Just Town Council for a defibrillator
  • Completed 23/24 planting season with over 700 mixed hedgerow tree saplings planted (some grown ourselves, others funded by Woodland Trust & Forest For Cornwall) and 10 fruit trees planted (private donor)
  • Secured trees from Forest for Cornwall to support our Tree Group to plant saplings as shelterbelts around one of our Maincrop fields
  • Produced a Land Management Plan
  • CEVAS Accreditation achieved via LEAF to enable educational visits
  • Employed a part-time Events Co-ordinator Jan 2024 – March 2025
  • Introduced better branding and print literature

2023

  • Secured £46,840 funding from FIPL ready to deliver 6f deer/rabbit fencing around our chicken/maincrop fields in 2024 and secured a further £7400 in match funding donations to appoint an Events Co-ordinator to deliver a programme of volunteering, educational visits and seasonal events
  • Attracted 5 new Directors bringing relevant skills and increased capacity to the Board
  • Achieved Community Hub Status (with support from Volunteer Cornwall)
  • Brushcutter Training, Safeguarding Training and DBS checks completed
  • 1 Memory Cafe group, 1 Home Ed group, 1 scout group, 3 primary schools, 3 secondary school visits hosted including one SEND group visiting weekly
  • Royal Horticultural Society – Outstanding Award
  • Permaculture courses began in partnership with WEA
  • Placements delivered via Learn Your Way, Mounts Bay Academy and Penwith College
  • Harvest Open Day, 1st Sunday in Oct
  • Plunkett Foundation – National winner of the Training & Employment category
  • Rainwater harvesting system installed Summer (funded by £18,655.14 from Penwith Landscape Partnership & £9641.03 from South West Water)
  • Bioblitz wildlife survey undertaken in partnership with PLP
  • Speaker at the Cornwall Sustainable Food Summit
  • Secured £2k from the Tree Council ‘Branching Out’ fund for shelterbelt trees and support for youth groups to help plant them
  • Finalist in the South West Farmer Awards
  • Registered for Tempo Time Credits
  • Fire safety equipment upgraded
  • Winner – South West In Bloom – regional ‘In My Neighbourhood’ category
  • Spring Open Day (Sunday before the Easter weekend)
  • Wildflower Propagation and small Tree Nursery began Spring (with a £2,995 grant from Penwith Landscape Partnership)

2022

2021

  • Winner of the St Just Town Council Community Group Award
  • Rabbit proof fencing added to allotments field & fencing for shelter added to Market Garden
  • Cornwall Sustainability Awards – Highly Commended

2015

  • Cornwall Sustainability Awards – Winner

2014

  • Purchase of the Farm by Bosavern Community Enterprises Ltd (BCEnts) financed by a substantial grant from Local Food Lottery (Big Lottery Fund) , a Community Share Offer and a loan from a local benefactor.

2011

  • Cornwall Council decided to sell the farm and buildings, some visionary members of the local community rallied others.

2009

  • Members of the community teamed up to lease the farm from Cornwall Council and began growing vegetables on the farm.

1918

  • The farm was originally used as a training farm to encourage new farmers into agriculture at the end of WW1