Dr. Teresa Hooks, Research and Development Officer with the NRN, recently featured as part of a radio interview with OceanFM talking about Social Farming in Ireland. Social farming involves facilitating participants with opportunities to engage in everyday activities on ordinary working farms to increase their social skills, self-esteem and confidence.
Those who participate in social farming come from a range of backgrounds including people experiencing mental health issues, people with intellectual, physical and sensory disabilities, older people, the long-term unemployed, young people who are at risk, and refugees, among others.
Teresa recently conducted a case study on Social Farming in Ireland which details what social farming is, how it operates in Ireland and the key actors involved. Teresa was hosted by Social Farming Ireland (SoFI), the key organisation behind developing social farming in Ireland, who are based in Drumshanbo, Co. Leitrim and she also visited the farm of Tommy Earley in Drumshanbo, as one of the farmers who hosts social farming placements on his farm. Tommy began social farming in 2014 and sees it as being “very good for the participants and its good for the farmer”. To read the full case study see here.
Ocean FM invited Teresa to come on air and explain to their listeners in the North-West about this case study and Social Farming in Ireland.
To listen to the full interview, please click here.
