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You can foster an animal by clicking the "Foster Me" button next to each animal's name. You will receive personal updates from your chosen animal itself.
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We are delighted that Mac the Mossburn Rabbit now has his own book.
The story follows our very own Mac on a voyage of discovery with the help of Fern the Deer and the Rabbit Rescue Squad, amongst others.
Mossburn development news
With funding from Dumfries and Galloway Council Mossburn employed a Development Officer last year.
Well, that was almost 12 months ago and the business development plan is fast becoming a reality, with plans afoot for Mossburn to become a Creative Therapy Centre offering:
An Outdoor Curriculum
Exploratory Garden
Work experience and opportunities for individuals to “Get Ready for Work”
Animal Assisted Learning and Therapy
Blacksmithing courses
If you've heard of boot camp...... you can imagine hoof camp...... it's Mossburn's fun answer for troubled and troublesome youngsters
bringing together two professional fields – horse and psychological therapy/learning
collaborative approach – therapeutic team
a short term ‘brief’ therapy
experiential in nature - ‘being’ and ‘doing’
activity and processing
a unique ‘relational dynamic’
Evidence is available to show that the method can help with
Behavioral issues
Attention deficit disorder
Addiction
Eating disorders
Abused and Abuser
Depression
Anxiety
Relationship problems
Communication issues
ASDAN and Qualifications With short term funding recently received we have employed a part time key support worker at Mossburn whose main role is to work alongside (mentor) our current young people, using the resources available at Mossburn, to help them learn new skills and to receive appropriate training.
In the future we hope to offer the services of our mentor to more young people on placement and to work in partnership with Schools and other agencies to offer an alternative to full time in the classroom for youngsters who could benefit educationally from a few hours spent learning in a different way.
Mossburn is working towards becoming a Learn Direct branded centre and an ASDAN approved centre.
Outdoor Curriculum With the complete renovation of the current Mossburn garden we certainly have grand idea’s for an Exploratory Garden, but no funding, yet!!!! Our garden design is fun, ineractive, multi-sensory and scientific but can also be peaceful and therapeutic.
We hope to enlist the help of some secondary school science departments in developing the project once we have the basis of the work complete.
The garden will have multiple educational and therapeutic uses.
Getting ready for work For youngsers who are leaving school or considering their options; Mossburn is a superb place to gain some work experience. We can offer an understanding of all things to do with work including an introduction to health and safety, child protection, work based policies and good practice. In the field of animal care and welfare there are opportunities to learn about the needs of a wide variety of animals. In future we will also be able to offer horticulture and market gardening.
Animal assisted learning and therapy - Mossburn Learn At the moment this is an exciting one off pilot scheme we are about to run for a period of 6 months. Working in partnership primarily with the Leaving Care Team and Careers Scotland with funding received from Awards for All and the More Choices, More Chances Intervention Fund 16+ we are about to give 8 young people an experience we hope they will never forget. The pilot scheme will involve - young people, working with and for animals, learning about themselves and their own needs in comparison. Add literacy and numeracy, horticulture, market gardening and finally hoof camp to the equation and we hope they leave Mossburn better equipped, externally and internally, and filled with idea's and vision for their future's.
The whole pilot scheme will be carefully monitored, evidenced and evaluated.
We think Mossburn has something unique to offer. We think it could perhaps make a difference that has not been made before..... The Mossburn Learn scheme is a fantastic opportunity for us to find out for sure.......
Blacksmithing On site at Mossburn we have our own Blacksmith's workshop and Stan Pike, the Blacksmith, works here full time. Currently he produces works of art and one off commissions as well as fixing broken items and doing more routine metal work. He is also qualified to deliver training courses, click the link to be taken to his own site http://www.stanpike.com
Our future plans, apart from utilising Stan's gate and hinge mending skills in a practical fashion, include educational tours of his workshop and an introduction to blacksmithing for any interested young people who may be attending or visiting Mossburn.