Horton Community Farm (HCF) is a 2-acre green oasis in inner-city Bradford. The site has been transformed from abandoned allotments blighted by decades of fly-tipping, vandalism and allotment junk into a valuable community resource. It has grown from a group of volunteers in 2009 into a not-for-profit cooperative run by 3 paid directors.
Our site features cabins for storage, a therapy garden, wildlife areas, an orchard, a compost toilet, and a special play area with a willow dome, clambering boulders, sandpit and erectable shelter for when the weather requires it.
Our work is creating an inspirational permaculture centre for food growing and community resilience through 5 main strands: environmental education such as forest schools, horticultural therapy, wildlife, food growing and volunteering.
Our programmes of activities are aimed at sanctuary seekers, families with 0-5’s, people living with mental health problems and children on free school meals.
We are proud to be based at Cecil Avenue allotments where since 2009 we have been the main organisation looking after the site. HCF lease a third of the site for collective activities and the other two thirds remain standard allotments for individuals to rent from Bradford council.
Horton Community Farm is an official permaculture LAND centre.
For our work with asylum seekers and refugees we are recognised as a Garden of Sanctuary.
We are a cooperative organisation and registered as a limited company. We operate as a not-for-profit social enterprise meaning any profit we generate is invested back into the project.