Final opportunity for farmers to sign up for complimentary assistance
The Royal Countryside Fund's Farm for the Future Program Returns in 2023
The Royal Countryside Fund (RCF) is set to launch the Farm for the Future program in 2023, offering support to farming families in East Anglia and the East Midlands. This initiative aims to help farmers transition towards sustainable, profitable, and climate-resilient farming practices.
Established in 2010 by HM King Charles III, previously known as The Prince's Countryside Fund, the RCF was created to address challenges such as falling rural incomes, loss of local services, rising costs for farmers, increasing isolation, and mental health issues.
The Farm for the Future program is designed to improve the welfare of farmers and their communities. It offers a range of services, including training and advisory services, workshops on business efficiency, environmental schemes, and bespoke workshops tailored to individual interests.
One of the key focuses of the program is supporting sustainable food production, aligned with evolving farming policies and environmental land management schemes that increase funding over time, reflecting government commitments to back nature-friendly farming. The program also encourages carbon footprint reduction and habitat enhancement on farms, consistent with schemes that require habitat creation on farms and maintaining biodiversity.
The RCF is running the Farm for the Future program in collaboration with Pasture for Life. The program provides ongoing and one-to-one support to participating farming families.
The registration window for the 2023/24 Farm for the Future program is closing soon. Interested participants can find their local group on the RCF website (www.royalcountrysidefund.org.uk/farmforthefuture) and contact Sarah Juggins for more information.
The RCF is an advocate for the countryside, bringing together individuals and businesses to help tackle challenges such as the climate crisis. In addition to the Farm for the Future program, the RCF leads initiatives like the Farm Resilience Programme, offering free environmental and business skills training to family farms across the UK. Over the years, the RCF has invested over £11.4 million in nearly 500 rural community-led projects and supported over 2,500 farming families.
The RCF aims to see a thriving countryside, with 90% of the UK's land and one fifth of its people living in rural communities. The RCF's work is crucial in ensuring the sustainability and profitability of rural farming families, contributing to a vibrant and thriving countryside for all.
- Farmers participating in the Farm for the Future program, initiated by The Royal Countryside Fund, can leverage online education opportunities for learning about sustainable farming practices, specifically environmental schemes, business efficiency, and carbon footprint reduction.
- Within the Farm for the Future program, the RCF also offers education and self-development courses to participants, promoting lifelong learning and fostering the growth of sustainable farming in the East Anglia and East Midlands regions.
