HELPING young people who struggle in more formal educational settings is the goal of the Bridge Project at Hanley Swan.

The project was founded some four years ago by Neil and Sue Hornby, and it currently operates at Hanley Workshop, offering training and education to some 120 young people from across the county.

It has grown substantially from its beginnings, when it had just five students, and used a borrowed allotment in West Malvern, and accommodation borrowed from the Malvern Hills Outdoor Education Centre.

Now it occupies substantially roomier premises at Hanley Workshops, with its own land for raising animals and horticulture.

Neil said: "The aim when we started was to provide practical alternatives for young people who are not always at home in mainstream education.

"We currently have 120 students aged between 13 and 19, and they are all working towards City and Guilds or other qualifications, in subjects like animal care, horticulture, literacy and numeracy, or ICT. They come from pretty much across South Worcestershire.

"We've got a great site here. We've got a couple of acres, with pigs, goats, chickens and other smaller animals, and we've got a carpentry workshop, where the young people bake things like bird boxes and garden furniture, and we've also got a catering kitchen, where they can learn to cook using the produce we grow here."

Since last November, the project has also had its own farm shop, which is open to the public five days a week.

This sells the project's produce, as well as other items sourced from local producers such as juices, jams and pickles, and even quail's eggs.

"The shop also gives a chance for the students to work in a retail environment, another valuable experience for them." said Neil.

And he said the project has a good success rate, with all the students who completed their courses getting the qualifications they were aiming for.

"We have some drop-outs, but very few, only two or three a year, and we're delighted that all those who managed to finish their courses have qualified."

He says daily life in the project has a good atmosphere, which the students appreciate.

"These are young people who have had difficult times in mainstream education, but here, where they get to work with animals or drive tractors, they are much happier. They want to be here, which was not always the case back at their old schools."

He said that students are also offered mentoring if they need it, to instil life skills and remotivate them.

"We've got a fantastic team here, who are very supportive and encouraging. There are 12 staff and 14 volunteers, and they are just a great bunch of people who enjoy doing what they're doing.

"And seeing young people who struggled in mainstream education experiencing success, sometimes for the first time, in an educational environment, is very inspiring The farm shop at the Bridge Project is open Tuesday-Saturday, 9.30am-2.30pm.