Charity sees 'huge rise' in financial support to farmers following difficult year

2018's adverse weather led to an increase in farmers and farm workers ask for financial support
2018's adverse weather led to an increase in farmers and farm workers ask for financial support

A farming charity saw a huge 47 percent rise in the amount it paid to help struggling farmers following a particularly difficult year for the industry.

The Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution (RABI), a welfare charity which offers financial support to farmers in hardship, gave out grants of £437,825 to 215 working families in 2018, a significant increase on 2017’s figure of £297,000.

Overall, RABI paid out around £2.22m to 1,248 individuals and families in financial need in England and Wales during 2018.

2018 was a particularly difficult year for many in farming, with adverse weather a contributing factor.

Farmers struggled to recover from the effects of the ‘Beast from the East’ in the spring because they were subsequently hit by a prolonged and testing summer drought.

The amount of livestock killed due to the severe weather was said to be the “worst in living memory”.

One farmer had to ditch 8,000 litres of milk because his farm was inaccessible due to the wintry weather conditions.

And the impact of the summer heatwave on livestock and growers led the NFU to call for an agricultural drought summit.

Alicia Chivers, CEO of RABI, said that across the board, the amount paid out last year 'increased significantly'.

“Historically, RABI has probably been best known for helping the elderly, sick and disabled, but year on year we are being asked to do much more to support working families, and we fully expect that trend to continue.

“2018 was a particularly difficult year for many in farming, with adverse weather a contributing factor.

“Other problems about which we were made aware include unremittingly low incomes, debt, illness, evictions and difficulties with RPA Basic Payments,” she said.

The charity's regional caseworkers made 1,831 visits to those in hardship last year. As well as providing financial support, the charity invests a huge amount of time supporting individuals in their claims for state benefits.

In total, RABI helped farmers and farm workers of all ages claim around £494k in state benefits in 2018.

Alicia Chivers added: “More and more farming people are asking for our help with complicated application procedures and our team provides expertise and support with what can be a complex and often frightening process to claim benefits.

“We are in a testing and volatile environment, which is going to endure for some time to come. We foresee increasing difficulties ahead for many farming families.”