Five Acres Community Garden

17/11/2025

🎉 Happy Monday everyone! 🎉
What an absolutely cracking day we’ve had up at Brafferton today!

First off, we’ve been on a mission… a transporting mission. More bits and bobs have made their way to our new site.

Over in arts and crafts, we’ve jumped straight into the festive spirit. Christmas-themed thank you cards are officially underway and yes, we’re still finding glitter in places glitter should not be.

Cooking School absolutely smashed it today with toasties, fries and salad. Toasties so good they could win awards.

This afternoon we refilled hay nets and gave Mr T and Bailey the VIP treatment. Both horses are now fully stocked up and looking at us like we’re their personal butlers.

And exciting news… Tomorrow, Kyran and his ma are off to meet EDDIE HOWE at Newcastle! ⚽
We hope yous have the best time ever and we cannot WAIT to see the photos. We’ll be refreshing Facebook like we’re waiting for concert tickets.

Have a fab evening everyone and we’ll see you bright and early tomorrow! 😄🌟

14/11/2025

🌟 Happy Children in Need Day everyone 🌟

What an amazing Friday we’ve had. Our champions pulled out all the stops to raise money and show their support. The site was glowing with yellow today and the smiles were even brighter 💛🐻

A special shoutout to William who rocked his Pudsey onesie. He looked fantastic and brought the full Pudsey spirit to Five Acres.

In Cooking School our team cooked up a hearty meal to keep everyone going, with a choice of chicken dinner or sausage and mash. Perfect comfort food on a busy fundraising day 👩‍🍳🧑‍🍳

We also had the pleasure of welcoming Chris Blakelock from Oakes Energy and Rachel Galbraith from ISC Future Finance. These wonderful friends are supporting us with our renewable energy plans as we work towards becoming totally off grid 💚

Thank you to everyone who dressed up, donated, helped out and cheered each other on. Your kindness makes such a difference.

💛 Together we’ve helped make a brighter day for Children in Need 💛

13/11/2025

🌧️ Happy Thursday everyone! 🌧️

It’s been a very rainy one at our Brafferton site today – we were practically swimming our way through the day! 💦

But despite the weather, the team has been amazing. We’ve laid the foundations for our concrete block – lots of hard work, muddy boots, and a few soggy socks later! 👷‍♂️👷‍♀️

Over in Cooking School, today’s special was chicken and black bean sauce with rice – it smelled absolutely delicious (and yes, we were all very jealous). 🍚🍗

The extension is coming along nicely too – every day it’s looking more and more exciting! 🧱✨

And… we’re thrilled to share that we’ve been nominated for an award – Heart of the Community at SENDsations Gala: A Night of Stars 2026! 🌟💖
Wish us luck – we’ll make sure to polish our wellies for the big night! 😄👢

Have a fantastic evening everyone, and we’ll see you tomorrow for more fun (and hopefully less rain)! ☔🌈

12/11/2025

🌟 Happy Wednesday everyone! 🌟

What a cracking day we’ve had over at our Brafferton site – sunshine, smiles, and a whole lot of hard work (with a few laughs thrown in, of course!).

We kicked off the morning planting cherry trees kindly donated by the Woodland Trust – thank you so much! Our champions can now officially call themselves tree planters extraordinaire 🌳💪

Over by the stables, the lads were on a mission to banish those pesky puddles once and for all! Gravel was flying, teamwork was shining, and Manatsa worked his magic with the wacker to get everything level – total construction legends! 🚜

Meanwhile, Lauren spent her day in Staindrop cheering on Sarah Cox, who is absolutely smashing her marathon in aid of Children in Need – go Sarah! 🏅👏

In Cooking School, the team whipped up some delicious quiche, jacket potatoes, salad and beans – Gordon Ramsay better watch out, we’ve got stars in the making 👩‍🍳🧑‍🍳

We’ve also been working on some Christmas T-shirt prototypes today… and let’s just say, they’re looking festive and fabulous! 🎄👕

This afternoon we designed Pudsey-inspired masks ahead of Children in Need on Friday – don’t forget to wear your brightest yellow and bring your best Pudsey energy! 💛🐻

Mr T and Bailey enjoyed their salt licks and a good muck-out, with fresh haynets and water refilled. The sheep have been fed and watered too – happy animals all round! 🐴🐑

And a big shoutout to Wendy, one of our amazing volunteers, who joined us this afternoon – we love having you with us! 💚

Have an awesome evening everyone – rest up, because tomorrow we’re back for more adventures, more laughter, and maybe even more gravel! 😄🌻

11/11/2025

Happy Tuesday, everyone! 🌟
What a fantastic day we’ve had over at our Brafferton site!

Extension update: 🏗️ We have a window! That’s right — things are really taking shape now, and it’s starting to feel more and more like home every day (we can finally see the light at the end of the wall!).

This morning, we focused on Remembrance Day. We watched the beautiful Festival of Remembrance from the Royal Albert Hall, hosted by the wonderful Hannah Waddingham.

At 11:00, we joined together for a two-minute silence to remember the brave soldiers who gave their todays for our tomorrows. Everyone showed such respect and reflection — we’re all truly proud of how our Five Acres family came together. ❤️

Cooking School was back in action, serving up a hearty chicken casserole with Yorkshire puddings — the perfect comfort food for a chilly November day! Followed by yoghurts or chocolate mousse for pudding (no leftovers… wonder why 😋).

Over in Arts and Crafts, we made handprint poppies using paint — and they looked absolutely fantastic! Our Champions also wrote heartfelt letters to veterans to thank them for their service. We can’t wait for them to read all the lovely messages.

Meanwhile,Husqvarna and their Team held their two-minute silence at Bill Cooksey’s tree in Newton Aycliffe. Bill was our wonderful patron who shared many amazing stories about his time in the war before he sadly passed away - it’s lovely that his memory continues to grow with us. 🌳

A truly meaningful day filled with reflection, teamwork, and community spirit.
Lest we forget. ❤️🌺

See you all tomorrow — and remember, it’s hard to top today, but we’ll give it a go! 😉

10/11/2025

🎄 Happy Monday everyone! 🎅

We hope you all had a sleigh-tastic weekend because Christmas has officially landed at Five Acres!

We’ve hit the ground running — the glitter’s flying, the glue sticks are out, and the Christmas crafts are in full swing! ✂️✨
The gang have also been writing their wish lists ready to send straight to the North Pole… we just hope Santa’s WiFi is working this year! 📜💌

Next up, we became master chefs — designing our very own Christmas menus with starters, mains, and desserts that would make even Gordon Ramsay shed a tear of joy. 👨‍🍳👏

Cooking School kicked things off with some seriously tasty toasties, fries, and salad. Michelin star worthy? We think so. 🥪🍟

Meanwhile, the Gardening Gang have been busy loading up and heading to the tip — proving once again that no job is too mucky for our mighty team! 💪🌱

And a huge shoutout to the Richmond family, who kindly spent their weekend dismantling the Hortihub and helping move it to our Brafferton site. You’re absolute legends! 🙌

Have a fantastic evening everyone — rest up, because tomorrow’s another day of festive fun! ❤️

07/11/2025

🌟 Happy Friday everyone! 🌟

It’s been another fantastic week over at our Brafferton site – and guess what… the extension now has a ROOF! 🎉 No more surprise showers for us (well, hopefully)!

Our Friday has been full of fun and learning as we shared our knowledge and reflections about Remembrance Day. ❤️ We took time to remember the brave men and women who gave so much for our today.

Meanwhile, in Cooking School, the team whipped up a delicious chicken carbonara pasta – creamy, cheesy, and definitely plate-licking good! 🍝👩‍🍳

And of course, we can’t forget our furry friend Dolly the rabbit, who’s been living her best life after getting her paws on some Ringtons ginger biscuits. She’s one very hoppy bunny today! 🐰💛

Wishing everyone a fantastic weekend – and a peaceful, reflective Remembrance Sunday. 🌺

06/11/2025

Jokes with Joe 🎄

06/11/2025

🎆 Happy Thursday everyone! 🎆

What a banging day we’ve had over at our Brafferton site today (and yes, that’s a Bonfire Night pun because we’re still feeling the spark)! 💥

We kicked things off with a chat about what we all got up to for Bonfire Night — from fireworks to toffee apples and a few dodgy sparkler dances! Then we put our safety smarts to the test by creating some brilliant Bonfire Safety posters. Safe to say, we’re all official fire-safety experts now! 🔥👩‍🚒

Over in Cooking School, the team served up some sizzling hotdogs 🌭 (they didn’t last long — gone faster than fireworks on the 5th!).

Meanwhile, our dream team Donna and Lauren were up at The Oaks Secondary School today, showing off what Five Acres is all about! They had an amazing time chatting, laughing, and spreading the Five Acres magic ✨

Of course, it wouldn’t be a Thursday without Jokes with Joe! 😂 Let’s just say the punchlines were explosive (and maybe a bit cheesy, but we love him for it!).

Another absolutely fantastic day at Five Acres — roll on tomorrow! 💚

05/11/2025

🎉🌟 HAAAAPPY WEDNESDAY MY DUDES!!! 🌟🎉

What. A. DAY. at Five Acres — energy levels HIGH, spirits HIGHER! 🚀

Mission Move is in FULL swing… boxes flying, chairs dancing, and we’re basically professional movers at this point (someone call Removal Men of the Year 🏆).

A massive THANK YOU to J&C Coaches for all your help with the big move — absolute legends! 🙌💪 We couldn’t have done it without you! 🚌💚

Our Cooking School team absolutely smashed it with homemade CHICKEN BURGERS and CHIPS — crispy, golden, and so good we nearly started a round of applause at lunch. 🍔👏🍟

And guess what?! 🎄✨
CHRISTMAS HAS ARRIVED EARLY!!!
The tree is UP, the decorations are OUT, and the glitter is EVERYWHERE (and we mean everywhere 😆). The excitement levels? Through. The. Roof. 🎅🎁

Oh, and the extension? Looking chef’s kiss 👌 — it’s coming together beautifully and we can’t wait to show it off! 🏗️💚

Have the BEST evening ever, and enjoy Bonfire Night! Stay toasty, eat too many marshmallows, and don’t forget to “ooooh” and “aaaah” at the fireworks! 🎆🔥😄

04/11/2025