Camphill Blair Drummond

Who We Help, Why We Help & the Difference It Makes

What We Do

 Our Day Services

• A rounded life - We want everyone at Camphill Blair Drummond to lead a rounded life. Gaining skills and leading a meaningful, productive life builds confidence. The importance this makes to our wellbeing can’t be underestimated. This is what we work towards for all of our residents and our day students, and it’s what they deserve. Our residents and day students get involved every day with different workshops and activities, which fit their particular needs and help foster that all-important sense of purpose. The opportunities available build real-life skills. Our co-workers also participate and learn from the workshop leaders along with the students.
  
• Work the land - Camphill Blair Drummond is based on a beautiful five-acre estate and there’s lots of opportunities for our residents and day students to work on the land. There are gardens to look after, including the formal Potager garden and greenhouses, a kitchen garden where we grow fruit and vegetables which we all enjoy, and extensive grounds to maintain. We also have a small farm called Eastwood which is home to pigs, two Shetland ponies, chickens, ducks, rabbits and turkeys. Working with the animals is very therapeutic for our residents and day students, that’s why Eastwood farm is also known as ‘Animaltastic’!
  
• Make it - We also offer craft-based workshops and activities, the bakery being at the heart of these activities. We like to use traditional methods and natural materials and our students enjoy basketry, pottery and glass making. We also have textile and craft workshops. Every year we hold an Advent Sale where we sell our artwork and crafts, and the quality is very high.
  
• Skills for everyone - Some of our students have higher support needs but they still share the same need we all have to be part of something, and to contribute. They learn skills in workshops such as basket weaving, pottery and candle-making, and get a vital sense of purpose from being involved. We also offer music therapy and yoga, and have a sensory room in our InTouch workshop.
• Growing for the future - Camphill Blair Drummond has a big vision for the future. And some of that vision is offering opportunities to others beyond our immediate community. We’re refurbishing our bakery and when it's open and ready for business there will be genuine work on offer, to people with identified needs in the wider community.  Maybe they need to retrain, to gain new practical skills, to find a place where they can thrive. We’re a living, growing community and we want to be more than simply part of the local landscape. We aim to embrace the spirit of social enterprise, and offer employment opportunities, and value for money in any of our output. Our new bakery is just the start. Watch this space!

To find out more about our Day Service, please contact Gerry McKeown on 01786 841573or email [email protected]

Our Residential Service

• A real home - Camphill Blair Drummond is home to 45 residents who live alongside co-workers and support staff, with the emphasis on that word ‘home’. There’s a unique sense of family in our community and we treat everyone with dignity and respect. We encourage our residents to be as independent as possible – living and working together in a typical home filled with humour, vibrancy and fun, they develop life skills and close relationships which help grow their confidence.
  
• Our Houses - At the heart of our community is Blair Drummond House, an impressive 19th century baronial mansion. In our five-acre grounds, there are seven houses for our residents – Amber, Garden, Sycamore, Clock House, Linden, Redwood and Rowan. The result of the first successful phase of our Capital Development project, Garden, Redwood, Sycamore and Rowan are purpose-built, state-of-the-art homes, and the other three have been refurbished, with modern fully-equipped kitchens and bathrooms, and well-designed bedrooms and areas to hang out in. Each house becomes a home as soon as you set foot in the door. Light and airy, the doors are widened and adapted for easy access. The houses are filled with colour and textures, and display ornaments and treasures the residents have made themselves in their workshops. Despite their modern accommodation, they’re designed to fit in with their rural environment, and we’re very proud of them.

To find out more about our residential care and the activities on offer please contact Gerry McKeown on 01786 841573 or email: [email protected]

Volunteer

Work With Us

• Blair Drummond - Please click here to see our current job vacancies. If there are none currently please follow our FaceBook page for job updates!
  

Volunteer

• International Volunteers - Would you like to spend time with a group of young people from around the world, in a vibrant community, helping adults with special needs? International volunteering will be an experience you will never forget. You’ll be part of a vibrant, unique community where everyone has the opportunity to realise their fullest potential, alongside residents at Camphill Blair Drummond you will achieve a sense of wellbeing, experience diverse cultures, make new friends and find things out about yourself that you never knew.
  
• Local Volunteering - Camphill Blair Drummond is part of the local landscape. Even if you haven’t heard of us before or know what we do, if you’ve ever visited Blair Drummond Safari Park you’ll have seen the big house, which is the hub of our community.

  The contribution, commitment and generosity of all of our volunteers, both local and international, is very important to the success of our community. If you live locally and you have some time to spare, we’d love to hear from you. If you’re considering volunteering at Camphill Blair Drummond, we’ve put together some frequently asked questions (FAQ’s) which should help you decide whether or not this is the right thing for you.

• Corporate Volunteering - Going to work these days can offer you so much more than the usual nine to five. Today, corporate social responsibility concerns a lot of employers. And getting employees involved in volunteering strengthens businesses, motivates employees, and can make a tangible difference to local communities.

Fundraising

To fund raise for us, use the following link:

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Our Appeals

• Our bakery is being refurbished! - The bakery at Camphill Blair Drummond is a bit of an institution. Every day we produce delicious bread rolls and biscuits, the eating of which is an important part of our day! Our bakery is in one of the old mansion house kitchens and is over forty years old. Our plans to upgrade the bakery – now approved! –  include an extension which will give us a modernised work space and room for new ovens.
  
• Sports Equipment Appeal - For the next phase of our Capital Development Project we’re raising funds for a range of Sports Equipment in anticipation of the completion of a Sports and Recreation Centre. This will be a great addition to our facilities at Camphill Blair Drummond, and it will be a much-needed venue when the weather is bad!
  
• Become our friend - When you become a friend of Camphill Blair Drummond and give a regular donation, you help to raise funds for our current projects which in turn benefits adults with complex learning disabilities within our community. As a Friend, your regular gift, no matter how large or small, makes a huge difference to us.
  

Community Trail