Posted on 09 May 2025
Thanks to Hyde and the HCT supported mini bus, families enjoyed a very special Easter day out
Families in rural North West Sussex were able to enjoy a day out at a farm, thanks to funding from Hyde Charitable Trust (HCT), and the HCT supported community mini bus.
The day out was organised by Sussex based charity, Family Support Work, covering Midhurst, Petworth, Rogate, Northchapel and Fernhurst. Local social worker, Kirsty Hewitt, and her colleagues took 30 children aged between six months and 12 years and their parents on a trip to Orchard Park Farm – in the idyllic rural village of Lurgashall, near Chichester.
Orchard Park is a working, family run, farm with sheep, cattle and chickens. The farming family and village volunteers specially opened the farm for the families – even putting on a tractor ride. The children not only had the opportunity to pet lambs but also saw lambs being born.
Afterwards, the families were served a delicious afternoon tea with home baked cakes, which was described as ‘a real banquet’.
As the area is rurally isolated, and many families don’t have access to their own transport, the families were transported to the farm from their village homes thanks to the HCT funded community mini bus.
Kirsty Hewitt said: “It was wonderful seeing all the families having such a lovely time together. As the trip involved families from different villages, it also brought the children together, which only happens a few times a year. Trips like these enable children and their families to build confidence, build friendships and thrive.”
Sarah Owen, Hyde’s Projects and Partnerships Manager, said:
“The majority (if not all) of the families on the trip were Hyde customers. It was such a special day. And, the community bus is making such a difference to so many lives. One of the mums on the trip told me that she now has the confidence to take the bus on her own with her children – something she wouldn’t have had the confidence to do previously.”
More about the community bus
We teamed up with Community Transport Sussex and leasing company Rivervale to launch the Hyde Community Bus Project to deliver accessible transport to people living in Midhurst and surrounding areas.
Hyde Charitable Trust awarded a grant to Community Transport Sussex, through its Evolve Fund. The bus will provide accessible, affordable transport for young families and isolated disabled and older people, helping them get to the shops, access support services and take family outings to parks and activities.
Find out more about Chichester based Family Support Work.