our story

We're Stella & Duncan, the family behind The Farmyard. Together with our three boys and a wonderful team of staff and volunteers, we're creating a place where families can connect with animals, enjoy the outdoors and make happy memories together.
For years, we dreamed of finding a place where we could raise our boys close to nature, town and the beach, while building a business that brought together our passions. When we opened Scoops Farm in January 2023, our dream began with ice cream, a love for animals and a desire to create something special.
Within the first year, we changed to frozen yoghurt, bringing something unique to the region. Since then, the farm has continued to grow and evolve, with new activities, play areas, animal experiences, a gift shop and plenty of ideas still to come. With this exciting new chapter, The Farmyard feels like the perfect name to bring everything together and reflect what we're becoming.
We love animals, nature, beautiful spaces and, most of all, creating joy. Stella has always had a passion for desserts and loves seeing people happy, while Duncan is the hands-on creator who turns big ideas into reality. From transforming our farm stays and building play areas to creating our self-serve frozen yoghurt shop, there's always something new taking shape here.
​
Animal Welfare Comes First
​
For us, animal welfare will always come before visitor numbers or experiences. We believe in quality over quantity, choosing to care for a smaller collection of animals so that each one receives the individual attention, space, nutrition, enrichment and care they deserve.
Our animals are not here simply for entertainment but they are part of our family, each with their own personality, needs and boundaries. We encourage gentle, respectful interactions and believe that the best animal encounters happen when the animals are happy, comfortable and free to be themselves. Sometimes that means an animal doesn't feel like interacting, and that's perfectly okay. We encourage visitors to enjoy our guinea pigs from ground level rather than holding them, as they feel safest with all four feet on the ground. Our bunnies, on the other hand, have their own personalities and preferences and get to choose who they'd like to approach and be patted by. We believe that allowing animals to set their own boundaries is an important part of treating them with kindness and respect. We also love giving little ones a second chance, and from time to time you'll find us caring for orphaned lambs or calves that need some extra love and attention. We hope that through these experiences, especially our youngest visitors learn that kindness, patience and respect for animals are just as important as having fun.
​
More Than Just a Farm
​
The Farmyard is about more than treats, activities and animals. It's about the people who bring it to life – our dedicated staff, enthusiastic volunteers and wonderful visitors who make all the hard work worthwhile.
We're a small family-run business that continues to grow, evolve and dream up new ideas. Every little corner has a story, and a lot of love goes into making it what it is today.

Thank you for being part of our journey. We hope you feel the love, enjoy the simple things and leave with a happy heart.

Welcome to The Farmyard!