Norfolk schools look after lambs to learn about livestock

The Learn about Livestock project gives pupils the chance to look after ewes and lambs to boost their understanding of agriculture and strengthen links between schools and local farms.

This year, 14 Norfolk schools took part, including five in Norwich. 

One of them was West Earlham Infant School on Scarnell Road in the city, whose headteacher Jade Hunter said it was a particularly valuable experience for urban children.

Children at West Earlham Infant School looked after lambs for a week as part of the Learn About Livestock project (Image: Denise Bradley)

"To have that real hands-on experience with farm animals is not an experience they get often," she said. "It is very exciting, but it can be a bit scary too, because they have never been that close to a farm animal.

"The children really love it, so we try to build our curriculum around it for the week. It is a really valuable project to educate children about the food chain and the role farmers have in society.

"I am a strong vegetarian, but I am very honest with the children that farmers are there to provide food and this is where your meat comes from.

"It tells them that this is part of their life, so we speak about welfare and giving the animals a really good life and taking care of them, and what our responsibility is within that. 

"It is important that children understand what they are putting in their mouths every day, and that it does not just appear on a supermarket shelf."

Children at West Earlham Infant School looked after lambs for a week as part of the Learn About Livestock project. Pictured: Claire Hewett with pupils, from left, Olivia, Arlo and Jay, meeting two-week-old lamb Houdini Ana (Image: Denise Bradley)

The project is run by the Food and Farming Discovery Trust (FFDT), the educational arm of the Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association (RNAA).

FFDT manager Frances Roberson said: "While Norfolk is a very rural county, a lot of these children will not have had the opportunity to see or touch a sheep, so it is really important for them to be able to interact with these animals and understand about farming and where their food comes from."

The animals were supplied by local livestock farmers, and schools had to attend a preparatory briefing about basic animal husbandry, feeding and bedding, and how to spot any signs of health and welfare issues, with vets on standby if needed.

Viv Lavender, school business manager, shows West Earlham Infant School children how to knit in a workshop based around the Learn about Livestock project (Image: Denise Bradley)