ONE Dorset rural refuge has had its moment in the TV limelight – and is hoping to see a boost in donations from it.

Longmead Community Farm near Milborne St Andrew was featured on a BBC1 Countryfile episode, focusing on the work carried out at the site.

Longmead functions as a retreat for families with problems – ranging from single mothers needing some rest and recuperation, to victims of domestic or sexual abuse.

April and Dave Whalley run the farm as live-in volunteers, with a team of other volunteers from around the county.

“We look after families – but we’re not about fixing them,” Mrs Whalley said. “We’re a respite from everyday life. Many of our families come from a very different environment – from estates, often. So it’s a very different environment for them, it’s very quiet and peaceful.”

The smallholding, which covers six acres, is home to five goats, chickens and pigs, and offers a rural respite for troubled families.

Guests usually come to the farm for one weekend every six weeks, for around a year. While there, they tend to the animals and the land, spending the whole day outdoors as a form of therapy. There is also an art room and a large kitchen for families’ use.

“We give them a safe place,” Mrs Whalley said. Many families who come to stay at Longmead are referred by social services, who may fund part of the visit, though self-referrals are also accepted.

Mrs Whalley explained that the all the volunteers were church members, and that the property was run ‘on Christian principles’, but that it didn’t conform to any one church or doctrine.

And with the recent publicity gained from appearing on Countryfile, the farm manager said she was hopeful of raising the £1500 needed to provide new homes for the farm’s goats ahead of the winter months.

“It would be great if we can do it,” she said. “That way the goats won’t have to wear scarves throughout the winter!”

Anyone wishing to do so can donate to the fund for the goats’ new homes at https://bit.ly/2vmKR1i, or via the farm’s website longmead.org.