Rural IssuesRural Issues
16.12.11
The Farming Community: Ten Years On
The Rural Big Society Briefing Paper
Rural watchdog highlights need to tackle poverty amongst farming households
Rural Coalition response to Localism Bill
The Rural Big Society
ResPublica and the Commission for Rural Communities (CRC) published a briefing paper:
The Big Society approach is already alive and well in many of our rural villages and market towns. But there’s a lot more that could be done. The CRC and Respublica have worked together to develop the briefing paper. ‘The Rural Big Society’, based on engagement with a broad cross section of rural interest groups, looks at the value of the Big Society approach to rural communities. It makes a series of recommendations for action, including that:
• The Church of England, whose assets of property and land sit at the heart of many rural communities, should work with government to see how these assets can better be used to support the rural Big Society
• Local parish and town councils should capture revenue from the New Homes Bonus
• Government should champion the role and potential of the Village Agents approach to support, advice and social capital-building, already successfully used in Gloucestershire
• Proposed local GP consortia should make annual reports to the villages and towns they serve, perhaps via the local parish or town council.
Downloadable version:
http://www.faithinderbyshire.org/attachments/article/128/The%20Rural%20Big%20Society.pdf
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FARMING COMMUNITY - TEN YEARS ON
Just ten years ago, the country was in the grip of an outbreak of Foot & Mouth Disease. Every television news bulletin featured horrifying pictures of the funeral pyres of thousands of sheep, cattle and pigs, with mechanical diggers excavating huge pits in which the remains were buried.
It was a desperate time for Britain’s farmers – those whose animals were affected watched helplessly as their life’s work was simply slaughtered and buried while others waited in isolation, hoping and praying that nothing and nobody would bring the disease on to their land.
Many farmers decided to call it a day and move into other jobs with a different lifestyle. For those who stayed it took years to recover – both financially and emotionally. Even today, there are farmers and members of farming families who will shed tears at the memory of those dark and bitter times.
Although foot and mouth disease remains a frightening memory, there are many other problems and challenges for Britain’s farmers and for the members of farming families – animal disease such as bovine tuberculosis, physical and mental health problems, domestic strife, bereavement, accidents, coping with government red tape, financial problems – the list is seemingly endless and all these matters can appear much worse with the isolation of a rural lifestyle. This is when the volunteers of Farm Crisis Network and the service of the Agricultural Chaplaincy step in. Their role is to provide pastoral and practical support by walking with those in difficulty while the problems are resolved.
Fred who farms in Derbyshire is a perfect example of how this support can help:
His doctor and hospital consultant had already, on two occasions, arranged for him to have a hip replacement operation but Fred claimed that he simply couldn’t leave the farm at the present time. Fred was persuaded to telephone the FCN Helpline, who alerted the Agricultural Chaplain. Within 24 hours a visit was made. It was made plain to Fred that his health and well being was of paramount importance and so, with this ongoing support, Fred compiled a priority list of things that needed doing – contacting the authorities to ensure that the identifying paperwork for his cattle was in order, updating all the livestock records and then organising for someone to look after his stock until he was back in action. Within a few weeks everything was in place and Fred is now bouncing around with a new hip.
Farm Crisis Network works closely with other support agencies throughout much of England and Wales, including the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution (RABI) & the Agricultural Chaplaincy Association (ACA). Volunteers are ready and prepared to help farmers when the problems they face become overwhelming. If you feel that you could help, please contact Graham Hinds: Telephone 07833 638562 or email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
You could make a real difference to someone’s life.
As Fred said:
“I didn’t realise there were people out there who could help so much. Thank you.”
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For media enquiries please contact Graham Hinds, Farm Crisis Network Coordinator and Agricultural Chaplain.
Telephone 07833 638562 or email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Notes for Editors:
Farm Crisis Network
· Farm Crisis Network provides practical and pastoral support to farming people during periods of anxiety and stress resulting from problems which relate to either the farm household or the farm business.
· FCN runs a national confidential Helpline from 7.00 am until 11.00 pm every day of the year. It is staffed by a team of volunteers.
· There are more than 250 FCN volunteers throughout the UK who will, if needed, visit individuals to support them through their problems. The work of the volunteers is overseen by a group of local co-ordinators. There is an active group of 10 volunteers in Derbyshire. FCN has a national team of six people based in Northamptonshire headed by Executive Director, Reverend Sarah Brown.
· FCN is a Registered Charity and a Company limited by guarantee. It is governed by a Board of Trustees. Its patron is H.R.H. The Prince of Wales and its President is Christopher Jones who founded the charity in 1995.
· FCN is a Christian organisation and, as such, it has a Christian ethos behind everything it does. FCN’s services are available to everyone in need in the farming community of any faith or none.
· FCN is part of Farming Help which is a group of national charities working in the farming community.
Farm Crisis Network (Registered Charity 1095919),
Manor Farm, West Haddon, Northampton NN6 7AQ
Contact: Peter Riley
Tel: 01788 510866
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Website: www.fcn.org.uk
Agricultural Chaplaincy Project:
· A free, confidential service managed by Rural Action Derbyshire.
· Provides practical, pastoral and spiritual support to farmers & farming families in Derbyshire.
· The chaplaincy covers 65 parishes across the north part of the Derbyshire Dales and Hope Valley.
Rural Action Derbyshire (Registered charity number 1061531)
Church Street, Wirksworth, Derbyshire DE4 4EY
Contact: Graham Hinds, Agricultural Chaplain
Tel: 01332 602124 or 07833 638562
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Website: www.ruralactionderbyshire.org.uk/agricultural-chaplaincy
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Rural Coalition (14 member organisation including Arthur Rank Centre)
See their response to the Localism Bill and also their report ‘Rural Challenge’ at:
http://www.acre.org.uk/our-work/the-rural-coalition/index
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Rural watchdog highlights need to tackle poverty amongst farming households
Full and headline versions of the report ‘Poverty amongst farming households: achieving sustainable livelihoods’ can be downloaded at: http://www.ruralcommunities.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/farming_poverty.pdf and http://www.ruralcommunities.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/farming_poverty_headline.pdf
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