OUR HISTORY
OUR HISTORY
In 2018 Finchams Farm was formally registered as a charity, although it had been operating on a non-profit, charitable service for many years before this.
In 2022 Bridget retired and the farm was sold to Cecile Roberts, currently the CEO of Emmaus Norfolk & Waveney, who had been involved with the farm and the work done from there for many years, as a trustee initially, and volunteer more recently. Bridget remains on our site in a beautiful log cabin she has had built, but now in her 80’s, she is enjoying her well-earned retirement. Cecile also lives on site in a separate dwelling from that used by the charity; and volunteers her free time in the garden, clearing barns, laying paths, feeding chickens, planting and harvesting and doing what is needed to initially get and now keep, the farmhouse and grounds in a good condition.
CHARITY STATUS
Croft began life as Finchams Farm, a place for the vulnerable to stay and recover that increasingly focused on supporting people struggling with addiction and was primarily working with men until 2022 when the charity went into review.
Over 30 years Fincham's Farm supported many people who needed a safe place to stay whilst they attempted to enter and sustain recovery.
The Charity was led for many years by Bridget Hickey-Williams a single parent to her adopted children, and matriarch at the farm supporting all who stayed there.
FINCHAM'S Farm
Croft began life as Finchams Farm, a place for the vulnerable to stay and recover that increasingly focused on supporting people struggling with addiction and was primarily working with men until 2022 when the charity went into review.
Over 30 years Fincham's Farm supported many people who needed a safe place to stay whilst they attempted to enter and sustain recovery.
The Charity was led for many years by Bridget Hickey-Williams a single parent to her adopted children, and matriarch at the farm supporting all who stayed there.
FINCHAM'S Farm
In 2018 Finchams Farm was formally registered as a charity, although it had been operating on a non-profit, charitable service for many years before this.
In 2022 Bridget retired and the farm was sold to Cecile Roberts, currently the CEO of Emmaus Norfolk & Waveney, who had been involved with the farm and the work done from there for many years, as a trustee initially, and volunteer more recently. Bridget remains on our site in a beautiful log cabin she has had built, but now in her 80’s, she is enjoying her well-earned retirement. Cecile also lives on site in a separate dwelling from that used by the charity; and volunteers her free time in the garden, clearing barns, laying paths, feeding chickens, planting and harvesting and doing what is needed to initially get and now keep, the farmhouse and grounds in a good condition.
CHARITY STATUS
TIME TO RESET
The sale of the property highlighted a number of structural issues we needed to address to ensure we could offer a safe and secure place for residents, so in late 2022 the board made the difficult decision to support current tenants to move on in order that we could undertake the works needed to ensure that the Farm provides safe and secure future accommodation. The last of the tenants moved on in the summer of 2023 and work began in earnest on the site.
TIME TO RESET
The sale of the property highlighted a number of structural issues we needed to address to ensure we could offer a safe and secure place for residents, so in late 2022 the board made the difficult decision to support current tenants to move on in order that we could undertake the works needed to ensure that the Farm provides safe and secure future accommodation. The last of the tenants moved on in the summer of 2023 and work began in earnest on the site.
Which rooms/buildings to renovate. We started with the main farmhouse building which has now been renovated beautifully. That provides 3 bedrooms for guests and one for a support worker to stay onsite. Beyond this, we have no other accommodation currently up to standard, so we have applied for planning permission to create garden apartments so we can revert to our former capacity of 6 people staying with us.
7. RENOVATE EXISTING BUILDINGS
That some of the existing accommodation needed updating, 3 bedrooms have now been completely updated. However we wanted to create 6 garden apartments for our 6 long term residential guests and allow for the 3 farmhouse rooms to be for short term trauma recovery retreats.
6. PROVIDE SELF-CONTAINED APARTMENTS
To explore how, beyond housing people, we can use the site to benefit the most people. With this in mind, we are exploring partnerships with other local charities supporting vulnerable people, and looking to offer our site to their clients for therapeutic work. Charities interested in exploring this potential should contact our co-chairs georgie@croft.org.uk and julie@croft.org.uk who are building our partnerships.
5. EXPLORE PARTNERSHIPS
We will harvest and develop the fresh produce from our land, and animals, and use those to create a range of micro enterprises including a micro farm shop and from the gate produce Merino wool and traditional crafts associated with crofts including weaving, dying fabric, cooking, baking, arts etc. These micro enterprises will give our residents skills for work, in establishing micro enterprises and independent living, and build self-esteem and entrepreneurial experience.
4. WORK FOR WELLBEING
To offer supported accommodation with a difference – the difference being the focus on recovery from trauma. We have plans to do this in 4 ways:
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Access to exceptional, trauma informed phycologists & therapists, for individual and potentially group sessions as needed.
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Horticultural therapy-using our fabulous grounds, gardens and orchard to take that well-trodden shortcut to mental wellbeing, via gardening.
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Animal therapy – there have always been animals at Croft – usually pigs, sheep, chickens, goats and ponies. We will be investing in more goats for milk and soap making , miniature donkeys because they make everyone happy and pepin merino sheep specifically for wool making for our textile workshops.
3. OFFER ACCOMMODATION WITH A DIFFERENCE
We will shift from men only to mixed gender.
2. MIXED GENDER
To change our focus from recovery from addiction to recovery from trauma. We are interested in working with a broad group of people including care leavers, people with neurodiversity or learning difficulties and people with dementia and will test out which groups work best at Croft through our partnership programme over the next couple of years (see 5 below). Our intention initially is to support a broad and diverse range of people, but we are open to focusing this further down the line should that feel appropriate based on our experiences, and those of those that stay with us.