Amerton Farm B & B

I had my child’s birthday party here not so long ago.
The party itself was in a very cold, unheated shed which was absolutely covered in thick layers of dust. You could see rotten sandwiches and drink spillages from previous parties which hadn’t been cleaned up.
The food wasn’t too bad when it eventually arrived very late on, but it wasn’t worth writing home about.
The children were bored and unoccupied for the majority of the day, and our personal ‘birthday party co-​ordinator’ was running around like a blue-​arsed fly trying to look after our party, but kept getting dragged away to serve customers in the children’s play barn as they were very under staffed.
At approx £12.50 per head, and 20 children in attendance, it wasn’t very cheap, so before paying the £250 bill I asked to speak to a manager. Eventually two very elderly ladies called (I think) Eunice and Moyra came down from the office and asked me what the problem was.
I explained how poor the day had been and how we felt neglected and unoccupied throughout. I was immediately dismissed and told that they have never had any bad feedback before so it must all be a figment of my imagination. Eventually they accepted that some aspects weren’t brilliant and tried to blame everything on our ‘party co-​ordinator’ who was no older than 16 years and probably working for peanuts. In fairness to the girl, she was trying her best but they wanted her to organised two birthday parties at the same time, as well as man the till and kitchen in the play barn. An impossible task for anybody!
I asked for a small discount on the bill due to poor service but this was refused and I was told I either had to pay up or they would call the police.
Very unhappy customer!

Great day out.
Lovely foodie shop, great gifts, garden centre, jewlerry bakery, loads of gifts.
Nice afternoon out and great for Christmas shopping

The stuff they sell here is great. I’ve not been to see the bird sanctuary on the same site but I understand it’s very good.
I like the baked stuff they sell, their pies are absolutely amazing.
The gift section is interesting, and has a great range of things to choose from including a nice choice of cards.
The farm can get pretty busy at the weekend.

Amerton Farm complex has something for all ages. I make regular solo and family trips there.
The garden centre is well-​presented and has good bargains after Xmas.
The 15 gauge North Staffs Narrow Gauge railway has a cheerful set of volunteers running it — with some handsome locos. The circular track is a tad bumpy, but it all adds to the charm. Best days are when they have weekend galas a couple of times a year — with visiting engines — so more scope for photography.
At holiday periods, there can be Punch and Judy and other entertainments, along with a large ‘beach’ area sand pit.
Old tractors can be clambered upon in the farmyard area and the pigs, goats, ponies and sometimes cute Dexter cows can be admired or patted. This area is well-​organised for hygiene too, with soap and taps. A party room is available for hire for younger children.
I saw the inaugeration of the Playbarn — which was originally constructed by experts. It’s far less boring than your generic Wacky Warehouses et al. My sons had lots of fun there when younger. Not sure if the mini tractors are stil available, as haven’t been inside lately — but they were treated something like dodgems! Oh, and the bacon butties with a mug of tea/​coffee are a really good deal at approx £3 each!
The tiny sweetshop sells delicious, moderately-​priced chocolates by weight and interesting sweetmeats, plus they take orders for the decorative, if pricey, wedding & occasion cakes.
Amber is a main theme in the jewellery shop, with some gorgeous pieces for sale, along with silver and other metalware items. The proprietor sources most in Poland and they’re excellent value for money. The owner does individual commissions and has another shop at Swinfen, outside Lichfield.
Last time I was there, one could view and order beautifully made furniture too.
Amerton Bakery makes and bakes on the premises — delicious traybakes, cakes and pastries, along with a great range of savouries e.g. pasties, portioned meals like lasagne, quiche etc. The bread and rolls are terrific — using a variety of flours, and there are loaf cakes of many types, plus scones and savoury pizza-​like flatbreads. All at reasonable cost, although, I like to look for the ‘guzoffas’ first!!!
More to follow about the outlets in Amerton!

Amerton Farm is a great place to take young children, especially as it is free to see the farm animals (and free parking too!) Although it is only small, the farm yard has chickens, cows, horses, goats and pigs — plenty to keep young children amused! There is also a separate wildlife rescue centre where you can see a wide range of animals, but there is an admission charge to pay. Also at the farm is a playbarn (indoor playground), but again charges apply.

Amerton is a lovely place to take the children. It has a wildlife centre rescue centre where the children can see foxes, snakes, birds of prey etc. There is also a steam train which is very reasonably priced, but runs only in high season. There is a playbarn with small tractors, bouncy castles and climbing stuff. There is a small farm area where the children can see the usual farm yard animals — last time we went there some piglets. You can also have children’s parties there.
My only slight negative is that it’s a bit on the pricey side.

This is a lovely little place. Plenty of shops and amusements for all the family. Shops include a large garden centre, tea room, gift shop, farm shop, bakery and pottery shop. There is a small railway but this was not in action. It was a shame we couldn’t have visited the rest of the features on offer. It is easy to get to from Stafford or Uttoxeter by car although the nearest public transport is from a village about 2 miles away and it is not sign posted from more than about 1 mile away. Follow the A518 towards Uttoxeter from Stafford or vice versa. The people there are lovely and the tea is nice although the menu choice at the tea room was rather limited.