A Visit to East Shallowford Farm
15 May 2010
[above - people assembling]
[below - seen on approach, last year]
On Saturday, 15 May, we went to East Shallowford Farm, a Christian farm project in the heart of Dartmoor which was being reopened after extensive refurbishment. The farmhouse is actually very ancient and goes back into the Middle Ages but this project began in the mid-1970s with the arrival of Elizabeth Braund and her friend Rosemary Bird. Since then they have worked the farm and provided rural experiences for inner city children mainly from London. It is an extension of youth work that Miss Braund had started, almost by accident, in Battersea in the 1950s. She became a Christian under the ministry of Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones at Westminster Chapel and the Doctor encouraged her to join a group that produced The Evangelical Magazine. As she put the magazine together in a nearly disused Baptist chapel local youngsters wanted to know what she was up to and this led to a youth work that flourished and continued when the chapel was demolished and replaced by Providence House. Miss Braund saw the need for urban children to have a wider experience by going on country holidays. After a few visits to a farm in north Wales the idea of a more permanent location was explored and that is how East Shallowford came into being as a Lung for the City. In partnership with Providence House this has been active for the last 35 years. Young people came and were introduced to farm work as well as experiencing the countryside and enjoying outings to the seaside. It was a Christian atmosphere and Miss Braund involved the youngsters in suitable dramas, told stories around the huge fireplace and on Sundays Dunston Methodist Church would have its small congregation augmented by a party from Shallowford. Many people discovered themselves and a Christian faith in the process and have greatly appreciated the Shallowford experience.
/below - last year\
By the twenty first century the buildings needed upgrading. This was challenging in that modernisation had to bear in mind the listed building status. The necessary consents were obtained and the funding for Phase 1 which was completed in May 2010. The farm house has been fully modernised. The huge fireplace has been preserved and all the other rooms have been brought up to a high standard. I was particularly interested to see what had happened to the room in which I did a lot work on the archives.
as we were - working on the archives / \ now - a bit more room /
It has been extended and could house workstations and facilities for researchers and teaching groups. The barn has had some work done on it and is well placed now for hosting events. Here is Elizabeth untying the ribbon to reopen the building.
On Saturday we met outside in the farmyard as it was such a lovely day but the barn offers shelter and space for a good crowd to meet indoors if necessary. Subsequent phases will, hopefully, include accommodation blocks and a warden’s house.
Sadly Rosemary died earlier in the year after being ill for the last three years. Elizabeth Braund is elderly but is still full of ideas. Her vision is shared by the local Methodist Superintendent the Reverend Edgar Daniel and it seems to me that the heart of the matter is the love of Christ which touches people inwardly and stimulates new relationships with God, other people, communities and the creation.