Wellbeing Walk every Friday afternoon, run by volunteers, an hour’s walk in and around Sherborne, suitable for all ages and fitness levels, always finishes in a café for socialising.
Walks at Leigh and Yetminster (not run by affiliated groups)
We refer older gentleman to the Countryman’s Club at Holnest: ‘We are based on Ryland’s farm, Boyshill, near Sherborne. DT9 5PS. The farm is approximately 40 acres and we have a wide range of animals including cattle, pigs, donkeys, sheep, ponies and pigs. We also have a large barn which is our meeting place, workshop and tea room! We always welcome new enquiries. Either ring the office or drop us an email and we will be happy to arrange a visit. We meet on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. We look forward to hearing from you!’
Also refer to The Shire at Crockermoor, a day service for people of any age with learning disabilities. We offer a unique day service provision for adults with learning disabilities, based on an idyllic small holding on the Dorset/Somerset border, just 7 miles from Yeovil. We provide the opportunity for individuals of all abilities and backgrounds to develop, gain new skills and interact with others in a beautiful rural setting.
The Potting Shed, therapy garden, Middlemarsh, Sherborne, DT9 5QN. To provide the opportunity to have practical experiences such as potting on, weeding, and general plant care, as well as also allowing the recipients to detach themselves from the everyday pressures they are under whilst relaxing in a friendly environment. To provide a community garden for people to enjoy, therapy rooms offering a range of therapies including Reiki, Reflexology and Sound healing. Meditation classes will be run throughout the year. We will have a lawn for Yoga and Tia Chi in the summer and an indoor space for this to continue throughout the winter.
Sherborne Orienteering Course In partnership with Public Health an Orienteering Course was set up around Sherborne. There are 2 courses, a longer 5k walk/run and a shorter route which is accessible for those with limited mobility or with pushchairs/prams. Maps of the courses are available from several points in the town – including the GP.
Volunteer activities – there are opportunities for volunteers to help outdoors in a number of different places, both in and near Sherborne. The Sherborne (visual arts centre); Ham Hill Country Park; Dorset Wildlife Trust; Volunteer Centre Dorset has a Gardening team; become a Sherborne Ambassador (promoting the town in the summer to visitors)
We have a series of walking and cycle routes in easy to read leaflets available from information points throughout the town( library, shops and the old re phone box) or from Sherborne Ambassadors.
Kingston Maurward (just near Dorchester) has an animal park which is free to attend, with sheep, goats, ponies, chickens etc. It’s open from 10 to 4 and the address is Kingston Maurward Gardens and Animal Park , Dorchester, Dorset DT2 8PY. There’s also a café and it’s accessible for people with disabilities.
Near Gillingham, there’s a place called Madjeston Milk Station. This is a working farm which started selling milk to people, then set up a café, then thought it would be a great idea to expand and offer people the chance to get close to their animals. You can buy animal food to feed them and they have goats, alpacas, ponies, pigs, calves etc. Its open Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 10am to 3pm. In the winter they bring some of the animals into the café so people can spend time with them. There’s no entrance fee but they do ask that people buy something from the café. Their address is Newhouse Farm Dairy, Cole Street Lane, Gillingham, Dorset, SP8 5JQ.
Water-related – there’s a hydrotherapy pool at Sturminster Newton which offers aquatic exercise classes, hydrotherapy sessions and private hire.
With a GP gym referral, patients can access the swimming pool and aquatic exercise classes at Sherborne Sports Centre.