Volunteers are at the heart of many aspects of the farming community, often keeping traditions alive and organisations running smoothly.
At the historic Park Farm on the National Trusts Shugborough Estate in Staffordshire, they check the Southdown sheep and Longhorn cattle that graze the 364 hectare (900 acre) parkland, tend to the pigs and feed the chickens. In winter, iced-over water troughs need to be cleared and fences that were swept away by floodwater rescued. Soon they will be helping prepare for lambing.
John Darby, who volunteers three times a week at Park Farm says: There is always something that needs doing.
Occasionally you will be knee-deep in water or your hands are frozen but it gets you out and makes you feel good. You go home and think, I have had a good day.
Invaluable
Mr Darby retired in 2018 after a high-pressured career which regularly saw him working 70-hour weeks. Volunteering on the farm, he says, filled a gap in his life.
In the 19th century, young apprentices would travel to Park Farm from far afield to be trained by the best farmers of the time.That learning ethos remains true today.
Georgie Neath is in her thirties and has been volunteering at the farm for three years.
Youre learning something new all the time, she says. Its helped my confidence massively. I now get asked,
can you just catch that sheep? and I can do it instinctively. It only really sunk in when I watched Clarksons Farm and thought, I know how to do that.
The contribution of volunteers like John and Georgie is invaluable to the farm. They are such an important part of our community here, says Farm Manager Kirsty Down.
Theres always a variety of things to do and theyre always willing to muck in whatever the weather.
Community
Georgie grew up around Shugborough as a child and says it has always had a place in a heart. She now volunteers on the farm once a week and is passing on her newly-acquired knowledge to her two young children, who have taken an interest in the animals.
For John, it has been a chance to meet people in retirement and get involved in something different. He says volunteering is for everyone all ages, all abilities and assures that not every task is as physically demanding as breaking through frozen troughs.
Were doing it because we love it, because we really care, he concludes.
