Royal Countryside Fund launches free support programme for farmers

This year's programme is open to dairy and livestock family farm businesses in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
This year's programme is open to dairy and livestock family farm businesses in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

This year's Farm Resilience Programme is set to launch in the autumn, with dairy and livestock farms in in Scotland, Wales and NI encouraged to participate.

The Royal Countryside Fund (RCF), the charity behind the programme, said farmers would be offered free business skills and environment training.

Over the past six years, it has benefitted nearly 1,400 families across the UK.

Groups of up to 20 farming families are being invited to take part in a series of workshops designed to help their business become more profitable and sustainable.

These include reducing waste and costs, planning for the future, and business planning and budgeting, among other topics.

This year an additional workshop focusing on the importance and impact of mental health in agriculture will form part of the core programme.

Each session is delivered by an expert agricultural consultant and the free programme is worth over £2,000 per farm.

An independent evaluation found that the programme delivers significant economic, social, and environmental benefits for farmers.

Keith Halstead, executive director of the RCF said: “The Royal Countryside Fund wants to make a positive difference to rural life by helping those who live and work in the countryside, particularly the smaller family farms.

"Our transformational business training, our practical workshops on the environment and our bespoke support for farmers are needed now more than ever. I wholeheartedly encourage farmers to consider signing-up to our autumn programme.”

Erin, a farmer from Wales who participated in the programme, said it was "great to come into a group where people could speak openly".

"The fact that you could bring any amount of family members was great – it was helpful to have my granddad come along.

"Not only did it put us on the same page, but he got excited to go out and it became an event he looked forward to each week.

“The succession workshop was the most helpful for us. What I found difficult previously was talking openly about having a plan to make sure was in a safe place in the future.

"It opened up space to discuss the need for me to become a bigger part of the business.”

This year's programme is open to dairy and livestock family farm businesses in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.