Up to 100 people with disabilities and their familes are set to benefit from a new respite programme run by Kerry Social Farming Project.

The Alternative Respite Programme will consist of a broad range of structured, non-residential activities designed to support social farming participants and people on the waiting list.

Currently, there is a waiting list of 87 participants for Kerry Social Farming placements.

It is hoped that this initiative will deliver 2,400 hours of alternative respite per year.

Kerry Social Farming

Kerry Social Farming has grown consistently, having provided 76 social farming days during its first six months of operation in 2013 to almost 2,500 social farming days in 2025.

The project operates under the umbrella of South Kerry Development Partnership CLG (SKDP) who are the contract holders with the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine (DAFM).

According to the 2022 Census, 3,054 young people aged 15–24 in Kerry are living with a disability.

Kerry Social Farming said this represents a significant cohort of young adults who may require additional supports as they transition from education into further training, employment, or community participation.

The activities in the new programme will focus on agricultural engagement, social inclusion, and community participation.

They will be run in small groups, in line with the interests and wishes of participants.

In addition to hands-on agricultural engagement, the programme will promote social connection and peer networking across the county, enabling participants to build relationships.

Activities will include seasonal camps, day trips, visits to attractions and agricultural shows, along with social events.

Launch

The new programme was recently launched by Minister for Children, Disability and Equality, Norma Foley on the dairy farm of Patrick and Mary B. Murphy at Ballycarbery West, Castlequin, Cahirciveen.

The minister noted the energy and vitality of social farming participants whom she met and the difference which weekly farming visits are making to their lives.

She also thanked the host farmers who provide social farming opportunities, as well as the wider community who are now embracing social farming.

The minister highlighted how the Alternative Respite Programme grew from collaboration between Kerry Social Farming and HSE at local level in developing a new model of respite, linking people with farm settings and rural locations.

Mary Keane, HSE manager of client services, disability services in Kerry said the launch was a proud day for the service.

As part of the KSF Working Group, she and the team had been working on ways to address the waiting list for social farming, in collaboration with SKDP.

Joseph McCrohan, rural development officer with SKDP, acknowledged the recent increase in funding for Kerry Social Farming from the department and assured that this extra funding would be "wisely spent".

As KSF is a voluntary model, farmers are not paid and the funding can be directed to actions on the ground.

"KSF wants to grow the number of farms and give more people opportunities to avail of social farming.

"Any farmer who is interested can make contact and we will assist them," he said.