National Countryside Week: events around the UK
If you fancy having a go at dry stone walling, wool spinning, sampling local ale or beekeeping there are various opportunities to do so across the country. It’s National Countryside Week, an initiative led by The Prince’s Countryside Fund that
aims to raise awareness of the importance of the countryside to the UK and to recognise the people working tirelessly to maintain and promote rural Britain. One of the organisations that is participating is UTASS a farming charity in the Durham Dales which Jessica and Rose Regeneration have supported over a number of years – our work with them on ‘the challenges facing farmers’ was mentioned in The Observer at the weekend (see the farming in figures section at the end).
The Prince’s Countryside Fund has released its own research busting the myth that “there is no such thing as a poor farmer” with Sir Donald Curry, one of the Fund’s Trustees describing how “we’re facing a silent crisis in the Countryside, 1 in 4 farming households are living in poverty. Livestock farmers are struggling with reduced herds that will have a knock on effect for several seasons. Arable farmers are looking at a 30% reduction in crop yields. Farmers are seeing increased levels of indebtedness and the number of farmers quitting the profession is on the rise. 30 dairy farmers quit the industry in the month of April alone”. The Fund has announced it has awarded £48,3777 to FarmCornwall to provide farm crisis support and debt management services to 200 struggling family farms in West Cornwall.