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Spitalfields City Farm is one of about 50 city farms in the UK.
They offer something very special in dense urban environments like London—in their simplest form, they are places where people can be closer to nature.
You can achieve that by going to a decent park, but city farms have an edge—they have animals and a community spirit.
The idea behind the city farm movement was to connect communities by farming small plots of land to produce food.
The beauty of these tiny urban farms and their importance today is that they give people a taste of rural life and allow them to see and do things they may not otherwise experience.
Spitalfields City Farm
Situated on a former railway goods depot, this pocket farm was established in 1978 in response to the growing demand for allotments among the local community, having lost allotments to developers.
It’s a wonder any of these places still exist when the land is so valuable to developers, especially in London.
Thankfully, they still do, providing us city slickers somewhere to escape the urban jungle, even for a short while.
There are around 12 city farms in the capital, and although Spitalfields isn’t as big as the likes of Mudchute Park and Farm, it’s more conveniently located.
It’s a lovely little place to visit if you’re taking a wander down Brick Lane or fancy a stroll over from the City of London, which isn’t far away.
What’s at the Farm?
You’ll find plenty of animals on the farm, including goats, sheep, donkeys, chickens, rabbits, ferrets, and even a cat or two.
Beyond the animals, there’s a tea hut and farm shop.
The Rosebery Tea Hut offers a few food options, from sausage rolls to sandwiches and soups, plus tea and coffee, of course.
Note that the tea hut is only open between March and December.
Inside the farm shop in the cute little shed, you’ll find plenty of lovely gifts and food offerings, including honey, eggs, seasonal vegetables, flowers, seeds, cute teatowels, tee shirts, ceramics, candles, jewellery and even some sauces.
There’s a lot of stuff jammed into that little hut.
Buying from the tea hut and shop helps to keep the farm going, but you can help in other ways.
You might notice the card machine on your way out, where you can tap to leave a donation, should you wish.
If that isn’t enough to contribute, you can rent spaces for parties, weddings, civil ceremonies, and photoshoots, and you can buy experiences known as Animal Encounters, which allow you to get closer to the animals.
Encounters include:
- Donkey grooming
- Ferret walking
- Goat walking & grooming
- Meet the sheep
- Feed the rabbits & guinea pigs
And finally, you can also buy hay to take away with you if you have a demand for hay!
Opening Times, Prices & Location
📍 Buxton St, London E1 5AR, United Kingdom
💷 Free
🕙 Tuesday to Sunday, 10 am to 4 pm / 4.30 pm (winter/summer), closed Mondays
Spitalfields City Farm Photos
Sometimes, there’s not enough writing in these posts to compliment the paragraphs with imagery, so here’s the rest of the pictures to get a flavour of what’s on offer at the city farm.
We hope you agree—for a small site, it’s got plenty of character and some quirky stuff dotted around.
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