A working farm on Dartmoor.
A place that changes lives.
Where children discover the countryside. And themselves.
Shallowford is a warm, working and often muddy hill farm on the edge of Dartmoor - and it's been changing young people's lives since 1976. Young people come here from cities, towns and rural communities alike, many on Dartmoor's doorstep, yet experiencing this landscape properly for the very first time. They arrive sometimes nervous, sometimes resistant and sometimes not sure why they've come at all. By the end of the week, they've fed the animals, worked the land, cooked meals from scratch, slept somewhere without street lights, and discovered something about themselves they didn't know was there.
That's what Shallowford does. It's been doing it for 50 years. And it works.
More than a farm. FAR More than JUST a visit.
There are many ways to be part of Shallowford...
Bring your group to Shallowford Whether you're planning a week-long residential, a day visit or a community trip, Shallowford offers an experience that schools and youth groups keep coming back to, year after year.
VISIT US
help us
From weekly gardening sessions to lambing weekends. Workparty groups, and volunteer days. There are many ways to get involved
at Shallowford. Come once,
come every week - there's a
place for you here.
SUPPORT US
Shallowford relies on the generosity of individuals, businesses and funders to continue its work. Every contribution - however large or small - helps a young person get here. Explore the options for support here.
In 1976, Elizabeth Braund purchased a working hill farm on Dartmoor. She called it a lung for the city.
Elizabeth had spent years running Providence House in Battersea - a community organisation for young people growing up in south London. She felt strongly that those young people were missing something: a connection to nature, to the land and to a world beyond the city streets.
So she bought a farm.
50 years later, Shallowford is still here. Still welcoming young people from urban communities. And run on the same belief that getting your hands in the soil, caring for an animal, and sleeping somewhere quiet can do something for a young person that nothing else quite can.
The faces have changed. The farm has grown. But the heart of it - the warmth, the community, the home and the sense of belonging - remains exactly what Elizabeth intended.
Fifty years of making a difference.
50
years
In 1976, Elizabeth Braund purchased a working hill farm on Dartmoor. She called it a lung for the city.
Elizabeth had spent years running Providence House in Battersea - a community organisation for young people growing up in south London. She felt strongly that those young people were missing something: a connection to nature, to the land, to a world beyond the city streets.
So she bought a farm.
Fifty years later, Shallowford is still here. Still welcoming young people from urban communities. Still run on the same belief that getting your hands in the soil, caring for an animal, and sleeping somewhere quiet can do something for a young person that nothing else quite can.
The faces have changed. The farm has grown. But the heart of it - the warmth, the community, the sense of belonging - remains exactly what Elizabeth intended.
Fifty years of making a difference.
- Juliet, Providence House Youth Board
"In the city, everything is so fast-paced. But once you're here, it's like you can actually stop for a minute. and just breathe."
50 years of bringing young people to Dartmoor
Making a difference. Every week.
50
Making a difference. Every week.
Residential school trips in 2025/2056
24
School children stayed here in 2025/2026
440
Sue Adams first met Elizabeth Braund over tea and cake at East Shallowford, then found herself drawn into a much bigger story. A retired teacher, she recognised the value in the farm’s hands-on way of learning, later became a trustee, and went on to write The Seeds of Youth about Elizabeth’s life and legacy.
Story 35: Sue Adams
50 years in 50 stories.
Story 18: Malcom Hunter
Mark Rose was seven when he first found Providence House in Battersea. By 1975, he was part of the very first group to travel to Bag Park Manor, before Shallowford became the permanent home of the project. Decades later, what he remembers most is the passion that gave young people like him a wider view of what life could be.
Story 34: mark rose
50 years in 50 stories
Story 34: mark rose
At fourteen, Darren Usher was sent from care in south London to East Shallowford Farm for three months. He arrived to porridge, farm chores and The Archers on the radio, and left with a glimpse of a different kind of life. Forty-three years later, he returned with his partner and son, and found his name still written in the visitor book.
Story 33: darren usher
50 years in 50 stories
Story 33: darren usher
Jason Clements first came to Shallowford at around nine years old. He kept coming back, eventually living and working at the farm through a YTS scheme before joining the army. Years later, during treatment for combat-related PTSD, Shallowford became the place he returned to in his mind when he needed somewhere peaceful.
