Collingwood Children’s Farm was a safe haven for many with disability. Now a mother and daughter are fighting to save a ‘unique’ program

For decades, visitors have flocked to Collingwood Children's Farm on the banks of Melbourne's Yarra River.

The not-for-profit community farm, founded in 1979, is renown for providing a serene slice of country life in the city for children, school students, people with disabilities and families.

Nestled between a tree-lined bend of the Yarra and the suburban streets of Abbotsford, sheep graze in paddocks and peacocks roam around the site.

For Lucille Le Meledo, 24, who has autism, the farm became a safe haven as she volunteered weekly at CCF with her NDIS-funded support worker from 2022.

But that ended abruptly in June, when the CCF's volunteer schemes for NDIS participants and specialist schools – most recently known as the Seeding Skills and Beyond Books programs – ground to a halt, with the farm citing "financial constraints".

"As an autistic person with severe mental health issues, studying or working full-time in my current state is near impossible," she says.

"My experiences volunteering at the farm were immensely healing and productive. It is the perfect opportunity for someone who struggles with social anxiety and overstimulating environments to work at their own pace."

She is now hoping to reinstate the program. Le Meledo and her mother, Australian performer Debra Byrne, this week secured two seats on the farm's 12-person committee of management that governs the not-for-profit.

Their new roles come more than five months after the CCF's chief executive, Bert Ferro, wrote to people involved in the Seeding Skills program to say it would be "paused".

Guardian Australia has confirmed a similar letter was sent to specialist schools.

"Unfortunately, due to financial constraints we have had to make the difficult decision to pause the program with effect from 17 June," Ferro said in the 27 May letter.

"The decision was not made lightly, but it is a necessary one to ensure the long-term sustainability of our community programs."

The letter said the farm would develop a "comprehensive business plan" to ensure the programs were sustainable and "better equipped to serve our community" during the pause.

Ferro told Guardian Australia CCF had been a "cornerstone of community engagement for decades" by "offering a welcoming space where people of all ages and backgrounds can connect with nature, animals, and each other".

"Just like the community we serve, we are continuously changing and evolving to meet the changing needs of our participants and the community. While some activities may shift, our commitment to fostering connection, skill development, and inclusivity remains at the heart of everything we do," he said in a statement.

"As a not-for-profit dedicated to social inclusion, our programs have long supported children, families, and individuals experiencing adversity through hands-on learning and community connection."

Ferro pointed to the existing volunteer programs – the Young Farmer Program – funded by Yarra city council – and the farm's "vibrant volunteer program", which he said included "several long-term volunteers of varying ability".

'Sole excuse to leave my house' The Seeding Skills program for NDIS participants, along with the scheme for specialist schools, provided hands-on farm experience to participants, including caring for animals, cleaning pens, creating bird houses to sell to the public and gardening.

Chloe Paul, founder of Having a Yarn – a company that offers support work and counselling for people with disabilities – says finding long-term volunteering opportunities for her clients that allow for some flexibility of hours was difficult.

"What the farm was doing is the only of its kind," Paul says.

Byrne says her daughter "thrived" at the farm.

"It is a unique place. It's the perfect place for people with sensory issues to be included and grow their confidence," she says.

Le Meledo has described the farm as her "sole excuse to leave my house and socialise" for a year and a half.

The farm says its primary aim is to "improve the lives of children, the disadvantaged, disabled, ­unemployed and marginalised persons".

It hosts events and is mainly funded via entry fees and wedding bookings. Other revenue streams include memberships, donations and sales of produce, according to its website and information lodged with the charities regulator.

Covid threatened the farm's financial viability, with lockdowns forcing the farm to close its gate to its 15,000 monthly visitors and re-home some animals.

The CCF's latest annual report reported deficits of $256,457 in 2022-2023 and $478,836 in the previous year.

A former employee, who requested anonymity to discuss the farm's operations, says the CCF introduced a modest fee for some organisations involved in its community volunteer programs last year.

"We were attempting to make the community programs more financially sustainable," they say.

The farm's continuing volunteer program is open to the general public. But the former employee says it was not tailored to people with a disability.

The programs for NDIS participants and specialist schools saw staff meet with support workers and organisations to better understand the needs and aims of participants, and ensure there was appropriate staff supervision, the former employee says.

Byrne says she wants to use her new role to encourage the farm to revive its community program that is "inclusive for all people".

"[Le Meledo] would come home happy. She would come home feeling like she'd done something that was of a purpose."