Northey Street City Farm is seeking a part-time Volunteer Coordinator (5 hours per week, applications due Friday 23 July) to engage with and assist volunteers at the farm and develop new training and recuirment programs. (more…)

The Permablitz project has the admirable goal of transforming ordinary backyards into edible permaculture gardens through dedicated one-day volunteer sessions.  With a “learning by doing” approach, everyone is welcome to attend, regardless of experience – it’s about sharing knowledge, exchanging ideas, and getting to know some like-minded permaculture fans over a cup of tea.

More information can be found on the Permablitz Brisbane website.

Our next Harvest Festival is just a few weeks away, and we need many helping hands to make the event a success.  Continue reading for full details on how you can help.

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This Saturday morning (November 14th) we gather at the farm to celebrate and honour the wonderful work of volunteers, staff and members over the past year. We start from 9am, with free pancakes, fruit salad, sausage sizzle, chai/coffee, etc. Families are welcome. No RSVP needed – just turn up!

This also gives us a chance to acknowledge the abundance that has come our way in 2009, with community, infrastructure and food.

This breakfast is followed by our Annual General Meeting (AGM) at 11am. All members are welcome.

Additional AGM Information
(Please note that nominations have closed.)

AGM Letter
AGM Notice and Agenda
AGM Proxy Form

Lindsay has been interested in permaculture for over 20 years, and became a volunteer at Northey Street about 15 months ago when he heard that the farm was based on those same principles.

Like most people, he had driven past many times before dropping in to check it out. Having been brought up on a farm, Lindsay said it felt good to get back to the land. ‘There’s always something interesting to do… good people
to talk to… very friendly and positive… the city farm is a great environment.’

Lindsay’s experiences with volunteering at the farm have inspired him to look at helping others as well down the track; for example, bush regeneration groups or Greening Australia.

In addition to his voluntary work, Lindsay has found time to complete the Horticulture I & Permaculture Design courses at the farm. He is currently doing the Accredited Permaculture Training (APT3) course. ‘These courses are great ways to
learn how the farm and other community gardens function… meet interesting people… get to the guts of permaculture.’

Lindsay’s generosity, skills and easygoing smile are welcome and valued at the farm.

Get Involved – Become a Volunteer

Below are the full contents of Northey Street City Farm’s newly compiled guide, courtesy of the Brisbane City Council’s Community Grant. One hard copy is available in the City Farm library. This online counterpart, however, represents the most up-to-date version of this continually evolving work-in-progress.

All documents are presented in PDF format and require Adobe Reader to view. If you have trouble opening any of the below pages, please ensure you have the latest (free) version installed.

Complete Manual Download the full (59 page) Policy and Procedures Manual, or open a faster-loading individual section from the following table of contents. Preamble Introduction and Acknowledgements The TREE Community Events Hiring of Facilities (to be added) Liaison with External Agencies (to be added) Media Relations Membership Partnerships and Sponsorships (to be added) Promotions and Signage (to be added) Public Space Usage Education Education Extensions on Assessment Farm Tours (to be added) Library Off-site Support Enterprises Enterprises Nursery Organic Market (currently down for review – please visit the markets for policy information) Finance Assets Banking and Sales Budgets Fundraising Payment reimbursement Procurement Administration Computer Use Communications – Internal Office and Administration

Governance Planning and Decision Making Policy Development and Review Project Prioritisation Organisational Structure Gardens and site Animals Composting (to be added) Donations of Second-hand Materials Electricity and Lighting Gardens and Gardening Harvesting Organic Certification Site Design and Project Management Storage and Security – Farm property (to be added) Sustainability (to be added) Tools Ute Water Use Caring for people Anti-Discrimination Celebrating (to be added) Child Protection Conflict of Interest (to be added) Conflict Resolution Inclusion Inductions Grievance Procedures (to be added) Homelessness (to be added) Kitchen and Lunches Performance Monitoring and Review (to be added) Privacy and Confidentiality Recruitment Sexual Harassment Smoking Storage and Security – Personal Property (to be added) Team Building (to be added) Training and Development (to be added) Transportation and Parking Volunteers Working from Home (to be added) Workplace Health and Safety Appendices Annual Planning and Review Cycle (to be added) Farm Organisation Poster (to be added) Volunteers Policy & Procedures NSCF Constitution (to be added) Nursery Guidelines (to be added) Organic Market Guidelines (to be added) NSCF Handbook Risk Management Plan for Events Staff Agreement Staff Induction Checklist Team Reps Meeting Guidelines (to be added) Teams and Roles: “Who’s Who in the Zoo” Training and Development Policy Water Efficiency Management Plan

For enquiries on policy, please see the contact person refered to on each document.

For general enquiries, see Contact Information.