'Great upset' over NHS funding cut, says farm shop

The end of NHS funding for a farm shop and plant nursery that supports adults with learning disabilities has caused "great upset", according to its founder.

Robin Newell, from Darwin Nurseries and Farm Shop in Teversham, said there were "tears" after staff learned Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust (CPFT) would not extend its contract beyond April 2028.

Adults with learning disabilities have worked in the shop and helped with farming, gardening and taking care of animals at the site for about 30 years.

A spokesperson said the trust "has needed to prioritise its limited resources towards core NHS services" in a "challenging financial environment with rising site costs".

Newell, who helped run the site before his retirement, said he feared the adults with learning disabilities and mental health challenges who volunteer at the nursery would be left with "nothing to do, as there aren't places available anywhere else".

He said he helped transform the land from a "big barn full of straw and an old combine harvester" into the nursery, after initially running greenhouse projects at Ida Darwin Hospital and Fulbourn Hospital, where he specialised in working with patients with learning disabilities.

Cambridgeshire County Council said that services would continue as normal until the end of the contract in 2028.

Newell said the impact of the service for those who worked and volunteered at the site was "unbelievable".

"They loved it," he said.

The service's focus was "not on disability but on the ability of each individual" who volunteered there, Darwin Nurseries said.

Volunteers helped with animal husbandry, making hanging baskets, potting seasonal plants, growing and preparing food and running the farm shop, the organisation added.

Volunteers are supported by dedicated staff who have been trained to meet their needs, it said.

The site expanded in 2014 with the donation of Bee Orchid Wood by the Woodland Trust, which joined High Ditch Wood and Darwin Orchid.

The site's greenhouses and vegetable plots sit by 7.5 acres (3.03 hectares) of woodland.

A spokesperson for Cambridgeshire County Council, which provides referrals to the service, said it was "working closely with [CPFT] to ensure any changes are carefully managed and disruption is kept to a minimum".

They added: "We are committed to working alongside people who access this service, families and partners to identify and put in place suitable, person-centred alternative arrangements well in advance of any changes, ensuring that individual needs continue to be fully met."

CPFT said it was "proud that Darwin Nurseries and Farm Shop has made a valued and lasting contribution to people's lives in our local community".

The trust added it would "continue to work with Cambridgeshire County Council to ensure continuity of care for all individuals who attend the service".

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