Botton Village

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Botton is a small village in North Yorkshire, England which is mainly a Camphill Community for people with learning disabilities. It was formed in 1955.

In 2005, The village featured in a Channel 4 documentary entitled Botton, The strangest village in Britain.

It has a population of 300, approximately 150 of those who live there are adults with learning disabilities. All of the people who live in Botton live in large houses with one or more house parent. There are 5 biodynamic farms located around the village. The "Villagers" as the adults with learning disabilities are called, work on these farms with the help of "Co-workers" who supervise their work on the farm.

In the village there are many different workshops where villagers make products which are sold to the public via a number of outlets. There are also three shops; A Gift shop, for visitors, with items from both Botton and other Camphill villages; A Village Store, which is the village food shop; and a shop called the "Mother Shop" which sells stationery and toiletries. There is also a "Coffee Bar" where the villagers and co-workers congregate on evenings to chat and play board games.