The beloved London city farm being threatened with closure

Of the surprising amount of city farms you’ll find in the Big Smoke, Mudchute Farm on the Isle of Dogs is one of the largest (and one of Time Out’s favourites). 

Spanning 32 acres under the shadow of Canary Wharf skyscrapers, it has existed for more than 50 years, offering wholesome days out completely free of charge. It looks after more than 100 animals, including sheep, llamas, goats, donkeys, pigs, chickens and peacocks. There’s a petting zoo, a duck pond and a riding school for anyone interested in horsing around. But now its future is at risk. 

Mudchute Association Charity Board of Trustees, the organisation that runs the farm, has been working to secure a new long-term lease since 2019. It applied for a renewal before its previous lease expired in June 2024 but it says that talks have stalled and the council has failed to offer terms that ‘would allow the charity to move forward sustainably’. 

Sue Mortimer, the chair of the trustees, said: ‘It is now London Borough of Tower Hamlets’ policy to offer shorter leases of up to 15 years, which would make it near-impossible for Mudchute to plan for the future.

‘As a charity, we rely on grants and donations to run the farm, care for rare breeds, run childcare, education for more than 10,000 school children each year, several volunteer training programmes, and provide free access to beautiful green space, all in the shadow of the rapidly developing Canary Wharf.

‘Funders and supporters need to know we have long-term security. Without a proper lease of around 20 to 30 years, we can’t apply for many of the grants that help keep Mudchute and all of our programmes running - including welcoming more than 250,000 visitors every year.’

Mudchute has launched a petition asking the council for a minimum lease of 30 years to allow it to raise funds and plan its future properly. The petition will remain open until July 13 and if it reaches more than 2,000 signatures (you have to live, work or study in Tower Hamlets to be able to sign), the charity will be able to take it up with Tower Hamlets council on July 16. At the time of writing, nearly 6,000 people have signed. 

Tom Davies, Mudchute’s park and open space manager, said: ‘The habitat is environmentally significant including woodland, scrub, hedges and coppice, wetland and grazed and ungrazed grassland, which we manage through Conservation Grazing and other regenerative methods.

‘If the community wants us to continue our stewardship longer-term, a lease of around 35 years would be ideal, as this allows us to progress exciting plans to preserve and improve the biodiversity and ecology of what is really a wonderful and valuable natural resource.’

The charity also anticipates that if legal action proceeds to a trial, the costs would reach up to £75,000 and so has also launched a JustGiving campaign in an effort to raise funds. 

A spokesperson for Tower Hamlets council said: ‘We remain committed to reaching a fair and sustainable lease agreement with the Mudchute Association that supports their work and benefits the community, and we are engaging through the appropriate legal processes to ensure a fair outcome.’

The UK’s first-ever cat café is at risk of closing. 

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