Alpaca farm attraction created new life for couple

John Franklin-Hackett's farm has welcomed more than 4,000 visitors since it opened in April 2022

A man who suffered mental health issues after losing his consultancy business during lockdown has said opening a farm attraction turned his life around.

John Franklin-Hackett said at the end of 2020 he started visiting alpaca farms with his wife "just to get away from everything".

When the chance came to take up a tenancy on a farm near Broseley, Shropshire, they took a chance and sold their home to try to run one themselves.

The couple have been offering experiences with alpacas, sheep and cows for two-and-a-half years and he said: "It makes my heart sing."

Since Mr Franklin-Hackett and wife Natalie, a former teacher, started with their first nine alpacas in April 2022, they have welcomed more than 4,000 people to Frankly Farm.

Visitors are offered the chance to go for walks with the sheep, pet the cows and get up close with the alpacas.

The experiences have had to be pre-booked until now, but due to their popularity people will be able to pay at the farm gate from next month.

"I think we have to pinch ourselves every morning, can't believe it happened," Mr Franklin-Hackett said.

The couple started with just a field and nine alpacas and now have 18, along with other farm animals

Mr Franklin-Hackett said he and his wife had started visiting alpaca farms to get away from everything

Mr Franklin-Hackett remembered losing his business as a "massive blow" and said: "My health went completely down the pan as a result".

"At the same time, my wife, who was an assistant head teacher for 18 years, went back to school after the pandemic and was no longer in love with teaching," he added.

To escape feeling "fed up", he said they had started visiting alpaca farms.

He said they had seen other people having a good time and wondered if they could do something similar themselves and find "a nicer way to live".

They decided to take a chance, although he admitted: "We had no experience of working with animals, we'd never been farmers, we had never run a visitor attractions and we didn't have any money."

The farm takes its animal experiences to care homes, offices and schools and hosts weddings and other events

Mr Franklin-Hackett said he hoped Frankly Farm gave people the chance "to get away from the problems in the world and all the stuff that people have got going on in their lives".