Farmer Palmers has always been my favourite place to visit with the grandchildren who are now aged 5 and 2.  The choice of activities is great for them, my granddaughter loves feeding the baby animals and my grandson laughs non stop on the bumpy tractor ride. 

When we get there they’ll play on the little tractors, go swooshing down the slides in the hay barn and jump on the bouncy castles.  We always have to go on the go karts and we can’t leave until they’ve had a good hour in the soft play.  Even if the weather is bad I’ll put their wetsuits on so they can jump in the puddles and play in all the indoor barns.

I consider myself a young and energetic Nanny but I really do appreciate the seating which is dotted all around the farm park.  I like to play with the children as much as possible but sometimes it’s nice to take the weight off my feet and simply watch them having fun.

The woodland walk is always good for exploring and such fun for the children to run around and be free in the great outdoors.  It’s also been used as a peaceful way to try and get the little one to have a nap in the pushchair so she has plenty of energy to carry on playing after.   

The very helpful and friendly staff always add to our enjoyment as nothing is too much trouble for them.  I once noticed the team go into action when a child was missing.  I only knew because I was standing next to a member of staff when she got the message on her walkie talkie and having worked in a nursey setting for many years I was very impressed with the way the public had no idea with what was going on.  There was no sudden panic and I watched as staff appeared in different areas and within a couple of minutes the child was found.   

The grandchildren enjoy going into the big restaurant at lunch time and take their time choosing their own packed lunch box and I can treat myself to something tasty from the hot counter which always has a good selection.  Of course the ice creams always go down well at the end of the day too. 

The baby changing room, toilets and hand washing facilities are all in a good central area which is handy for me as it tends to be our first stop when we arrive, last stop before we depart and many times in between.

Over the years we’ve seen many improvements being made with new go karts, play houses, bouncy castle, adventure play barn and the recent additions to the ride on tractor area.  You can tell that the owners really take pride in their business and put money in each year to improve the park for all the lovely families who enjoy visiting.



My favourite day to date though was when we went to the Easter Egg Hunt.  The children were completely overwhelmed with their first large scale hunt and everyone was in such great spirit, especially the Easter Bunny.  Farmer Palmers has so much to offer, there is never enough time to do everything, but with our annual passes we always know we’ll be back soon.

By Dorsetnanny. xxx

If you need more ideas on places to visit in Dorset then please take a look at our list of Attractions and Places to go in Dorset.

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Everyone loves grabbing a bargain but if you visit the charity nearly new sales which are run by Helen, Janet and Pat at Hamworthy and Broadstone you’ll be helping a really great cause too.

I knew that you could sell your own things at the sales but they will also happily accept donations with money taken going to their chosen charity SPRING. 

SPRING stands for Support for Parents and Relatives In Neo-natal Grief - i.e. supporting families through losing a baby either during pregnancy, at or just after childbirth.

A couple of lovely Mums at school knew I was donating and gave me a few things to take along so I had a good bundle of children’s bits to give for their next sale.



Helen, Janet and Pat have voluntarily been running these sales for over ten years now, alternating venues each month (excluding July and August).

I spoke to Helen and she told me it all started when she went to chaotic nearly new sale in Parkstone.  At the time she was helping to run a baby and toddler group in Upton and thought that a sale would be a great way to generate some much needed funds for the group.  With Pat and Janet they agreed that they should split the profits from the sales with a local charity and after a discussion with other mums in the group, SPRING was chosen. Unfortunately the toddler group closed but now all the proceeds from both sales go to the charity.

SPRING is a relatively small charity and the money these sales raise is highly appreciated.  Last year, they donated an amazing £2883 to the charity.  SPRING provides support and professional counselling for families and there are special suites at St Mary's Maternity Unit where families can go when experiencing difficulties during pregnancy.  It has proved an invaluable resource for so many people, so much so that with the Maternity unit's expansion they now have their own entrance separate to the main maternity ward so that grieving parents no longer have to walk through it on their way home.

These lovely ladies are very grateful for any donations of baby and children's items like toys, clothes, and equipment.  They’ll label them up themselves and sell them on behalf of SPRING.  If you have any items you would like to donate or you would like to sell your own items then you can contact Helen in Hamworthy by email on [email protected] or Janet in Corfe Mullen on [email protected].

For details on upcoming sales, please see the poster below or visit Nearly New Sale on Facebook.

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