Windmill Hill City Farm — Local services in Bristol

Absolutely love this place, I am a local Nanny who comes to the farm often and meet other nannies and Childminders here, we love the space outdoors, seeing the animals, the digger area, the mud digging area and especially the forest/den area at the back. The children could spend hours here and to add to it they've now got a little adventure playground! We also love the cafe and the food AND amazing cakes. However, the last couple of times I have been we have been asked not to eat inside if the children have had their own packed lunches. I do feel this is very unfair and a has made us feel a little unwelcome as it hasn't been on particularly warm days ( when we have sat inside the cafe) and we have bought food for adults and always cakes and coffee from the cafe. There is also a bit of a seagull problem with stealing food when sitting outside in the cafe area and another time the seagull stole my uneaten food from the cafe and I asked for a replacement and again the staff member who served it to me wasn't very welcoming about serving me again. I feel like this has slightly put a downer on the experience of...

My little boy (17 months) LOVES the farm. He gets upset if I try to walk past without going in now. He is so happy running around looking at the animals - pigs, goats, chickens, two huge rabbits, guinea pigs, ducks etc. This summer they had chicks and piglets and we loved watching them grow. He appreciates the sculptures that are dotted about and he also likes the little sinks where he can wash his hands!

The cafe (which has a new chef just recently) does lovely food and is really child friendly. The ladies in the cafe are very kind and always seem tolerant of toddlers and their messy ways. It is extremely popular with local families.

The farm has a bit of a higgledy piggledy vibe but that's part of its charm and everyone I know locally with small children loves visiting. The cafe has recently had a revamp and the entrance area is being updated at the moment. They've also been given 40k to redesign the old adventure playground and are planning a "playful space"... I cant wait to enjoy it. Make sure you give a donation if you can so that they can keep up...

Called in with my eldest granddaughter - who is well over the target audience age (5-7?) for the place - but loves animals - and we were both underwhelmed. Can't see how they can call it 'a working farm' - unless there was a lot more hidden somewhere. Obviously run by volunteers (doing a marvelous job) but could do with a serious re-vamp, and up-grading, but..... even if it receives the aforementioned, I'm not sure it will survive for much longer - it's right near the city centre, and surrounded by high-rise new buildings being constructed.I'd sell it, and buy a farm outside of the city centre to give city dwellers a better view of the countryside in this beautiful area of the country. All that said, it does a wonderful job for the local community, has different activities going on - and is a warm and friendly place to visit. The choice,...