A County Durham farm helping autistic adults build skills, confidence and work experience is preparing to open a farm shop and café.
New Warlands Farm, in Burnhope, run by the North East Autism Society (NEAS), is a working farm offering social and vocational training to autistic adults across the region.
The 78-acre site has sheep, cattle, pigs and chickens, while learners work in woodwork, retail, floristry, catering and drinks production.
The charity is developing a 60-seat café, restaurant and farm shop to give learners more practical employment experience.
Paul McGinnety, chief executive of the North East Autism Society, said the project fits the charity’s wider mission to support autistic people throughout their lives.
He said: "The North East Autism Society has been in existence for 40 years.
"It was founded by parents and now we've grown to where we have a number of schools and colleges, as well as supporting people in their accommodation.
"We also have a big focus on training and development, as well as supporting people into employment."
The charity now runs 53 sites across the North East and employs around 1,200 people.
The development aims to give autistic adults practical experience and help them move into work.
"We work with autistic adults who come from all over the region to do a range of skills and qualifications," Mr McGinnety said.
"The newest development is the 60-seater café and restaurant and the farm shop."
"We're looking to have a sensory-friendly menu and a seasonal menu."
"We want our learners to be really involved in the whole process, from the growing to the preparation, to working front of house in the café and shop."
The charity hopes to hold a soft launch towards the end of this year, inviting local residents and society members to try the facilities before the full public opening next April.
The project is part of a wider effort to remove barriers preventing autistic people and young adults from accessing education, training and work.
Mr McGinnety said: "We're also working with local authorities because we know there's a real issue of young people who haven't had education or training.
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"With our development, we can offer a full range of courses to support people and then give them the confidence to move into employment."
New Warlands Farm could also host sustainable weddings and civil ceremonies, with learners involved at every stage.
"The idea would be that people could come to us and our learners would do everything from making the invitations right the way through to the flowers," he said.