1. Identify and increase awareness of the needs of elderly people in our partner countries and throughout Europe 2. Highlight the benefits of social farming 3. Demonstrate the effectiveness of social farming as a form of therapy and meaningful activity for elderly people 4. Create an adult education training course in social farming for the elderly 5. Provide farmers, service providers, health care providers and other stakeholders with the knowledge and skills to engage in social farming 6.Encourage the take-up of social farming by farmers in our partner countries and throughout the EU 7. Highlight the importance of social farming to policy makers and relevant representative organisations 8.Improve the capacity of educational organisations to deliver training on social farming and social farming for elderly people 9. Increase the capacity of the project partnership, collectively and individually to be effective advocates for social farming and social farming for elderly people 10. Increase the number of farms offering social farming for elderly people
It was identified that there was an opportunity to marry the benefits of social farming to the needs of elderly people living in rural areas throughout Europe. In this project. FarmElder allowed the consortium to undertake research and study the needs of the elderly in individual countries. It was an opportunity to investigate policy directions and research the extent to which social farms currently work. The project saw the need to address the social isolation of elderly individuals, particularly in rural areas, face loneliness and social isolation, often exacerbated by living in traditional care homes that separate them from the wider community. The project also looked to address the healthy aging opportunities that were out there for active farmers, promote rural development opportunities such as diversification and expand the reach of social farming.