A children’s farm is concerned about the safety of its animals after a nearby pond burst its banks during heavy rain.

Staff at Belmont Children’s Farm in Mill Hill have been forced to move some of its animals away from the overflowing Sheepwash Pond, but fears are mounting as more wet weather is predicted.

Eve-Marie Stefanicki, who works at the farm in The Ridgeway, told the Times Series: “As the rain keeps falling it’s getting worse and worse. We’ve had to move animals to safety and the soil is completely saturated.

“We’re worried the pond will overflow even further and cause a worse situation.”

Staff have been desperately trying to contact the Environment Agency and Barnet Borough Council for advice but have been passed back and forth between the two.

Miss Stefanicki said: “We have called the council’s flood team on a number of occasions and simply been referred to the Environment  Agency with no advice on what we should do to prevent the water spreading or what the council can do.

“The farm owner has suggested getting the pond pumped and again the council referred us to the Environment Agency who do not deal with this kind of pond.

“The pond is not on farmland, it does not belong to the cottages on the other side of its banks either, as far as we are aware it is under the council’s control.

“But the council has been completely unhelpful and irresponsible. We just want to know what to do to protect our animals. All we want is some advice.”

The farm, which has more than 20 varieties of animals, has already had to move deer, alpacas, goats and chickens from the banks of the pond.

The water level is usually two metres from a fence which borders the farm, but has risen so much it is now one metre into the farm.

The Times Series is waiting for a comment from Barnet Council and the Environment Agency.