Staffordshire County Federation of Young Farmers Clubs (SCFYFC) are continuing to rise to the challenge of operating during covid times and keeping their members connected. Following the announcement of Lockdown3.0 in January, members from the active clubs in Staffordshire have joined forces to hold county meeting nights, with each club taking a turn to host the event on zoom.
Members have joined in with Cheadle Young Farmers who hosted a full 30 minute body workout, which member Alice Naden led in January. This was followed by Chase Young Farmers who arranged for Daltons Ice Cream Farm, based in Wootton, to show members around their enterprise with a virtual tour and Q&A.
Staffordshire YFC County Chairlady, Amy Boothby said “The evening was a great success and very informative and interactive as well, which I appreciate can be difficult when holding events virtually. The hosts had managed to take short videos of themselves in action on the farm, from milking the cows to filling ice cream tubs, which we were all able to watch through Zoom and allowed us all to feel as though we were there in real life!”
Feedback from members was really positive, with the only downfall being that there was no tasting over zoom!
Uttoxeter Young Farmers are next to host a county zoom evening, on 17th February and will be organising a “Would I Lie to You” night for members to have some fun with.
Staffordshire YFC has members aged 10 – 26 years across ten clubs in Staffordshire. Club meeting nights usually run on a weekly basis, with a wide range of activities available for members of all ages including sports, public speaking, cinema and bowling trips, quizzes and farm walks. Although not all members are from an agricultural background, the clubs in Staffordshire are based in rural communities and provide the much needed social life, new skills and learning opportunities, for any young people, with an interest in rural life and activities. The Covid 19 situation has meant that Staffordshire YFC has had to adapt the youthwork service it provides to its members and clubs and so many are now embracing the new normal with zoom nights until restrictions ease.
As Staffordshire YFC looks to the future, the federation hopes to be able to plan some fundraising events and face to face competitions soon but, in the meantime, is continuing to support members and clubs in a virtual way using technology and social media.
On Saturday 5th December, Staffordshire County Federation of Young Farmers Clubs (SCFYFC) held yet another first in their history since forming in 1952. With the cancellation and adaptation of many events and competitions from their usual format this Autumn, and no social events being able to go ahead, competitive members of Staffordshire YFC decided to get stuck into another rally, similar to the one held in May. This time, it was a Virtual Christmas Rally, with classes all themed around the festive season. The members of seven Staffordshire YFC clubs wanted to get ahead with these competitions, as all points gained now count towards the main Rally which it is hoped will run in May 2021. There were 14 Competitions Classes held, ranging from “Build a 3D Snowman from any materials” to “Club Christmas Song” which saw a range of musical talents coming together on video.
Judging took place via the Staffordshire YFC Facebook page, which has over 4500 followers. The number of “likes” for each entry was calculated along with an independent judge’s placings to give the overall result. The weekends virtual event attracted the support of seven sponsors, some of whom also helped with judging the classes. The sponsors were J A Bloor, South Staffs Water, LLM Vets, NVM Construction, Uttoxeter NFU, Agrovista and Frontier Agriculture Ltd.
There were over 160 entries from current members of all ages, encouraged by their Club Rally Secretaries, who got stuck into making and creating their entries and judges gave very positive feedback across all the classes. Hannah Fitzsimmons of LLM Vets judged the “Best Dressed Christmas Pet” class which saw an array of cats, dogs, horses and various farm animals entered. Hannah said ‘It has been an honour to judge this year’s Best Dressed Christmas Pet class. There were many brilliant entries, full of Christmas cheer; alongside some incredible training to keep some of the pets still in their costumes! Well done to everyone who entered, it really was a tough decision. I was very impressed by the creativity and effort of my first place.”
Amy Boothby, County Chairman of Staffordshire YFC said “Thank you so much to all our sponsors, judges and stewards for the support and help over the weekend, it has been a great showcase of YFC talent. I must extend a personal thank you to all the Club top tables and members who came on board this new idea, I have been blown away by the standard and number of entries we received!”
Once all the results were collated, the clubs were placed as follows for the Overall Virtual Christmas Rally 2020:
1st – Cheadle Young Farmers Club
2nd – Ashley Young Farmers Club
3rd – Uttoxeter Young Farmers Club
Staffordshire YFC has members aged 10 – 26 years across ten clubs in Staffordshire. Club meeting nights usually run on a weekly basis, with a wide range of activities available for members of all ages including sports, public speaking, cinema and bowling trips, quizzes and farm walks. Although not all members are from an agricultural background, the clubs in Staffordshire are based in rural communities and provide the much needed social life, new skills and learning opportunities, for any young people, with an interest in rural life and activities. The Covid 19 situation has meant that Staffordshire YFC has had to adapt the youthwork service it provides to its members and clubs and so many are now embracing the new normal, with weekly zoom meetings and COVID-19-secure activities.
As Staffordshire YFC looks ahead to 2021, the federation hopes to be able to plan some fundraising events and face to face competitions from the spring and in the meantime, is continuing to support members and clubs in a virtual way using technology and social media.
To view all the winning entries and results, please click here
Staffordshire YFC will be electing a new team of County Officers for 2020-21 on Thursday 12th November 2020 at the County Executive Meeting. Clubs are invited to make their nominations and send over to the County Office no later than 31st August.
Download the nomination form here
The David Palij Challenge Trophy Competition is open to all Young Farmers’ Clubs in the County of Staffordshire and is presented annually at the County Annual General meeting for Charity/Community Work done in a particular year, but not necessarily based on the amount of money raised. The Trophy was presented in memory of the late David Palij, a severely disabled victim of thalidomide who worked in the YFC Office during 1983 until his tragic death in a road accident at the age of 21. This competition will help us remember the brave and cheerful way in which David accepted, and in many cases, successfully rose above the limitations set by his disability.
The Award is presented at the County AGM on 6th Nov. The deadline for entries is 30th Sept.
To download the entry form for your club, please click here
Don’t miss out on your chance to nominate a deserving member for the Junior & Senior Merit Awards. The results are announced at the County AGM on Friday 6th November 2020. There are two sets of criteria as follows:
Junior Merit (awarded to a member aged 17 or under on 1st September 2019)
The member must have given a *continuous and consistent positive input into their club and / or County Federation during the last 12 months of their membership i.e. 1st September 2019 – 31st August 2020. Details of this are to be outlined in the enclosed form in no more than 3 – 4 sentences per nomination. Each club may nominate a maximum of TWO members for this category.
Senior Merit (awarded to a member aged 26 or under on 1st September 2019)
The member must have given a *continuous and consistent positive input into their club and / or County Federation during the last 12 months of their membership i.e. 1st September 2019 – 31st August 2020. Details of this are to be outlined in the enclosed form in no more than 3 – 4 sentences per nomination. Each club may nominate a maximum of TWO members for this category.
*As activities have been in a virtual form since March, please do consider the input and involvement that your members have given during the Covid 19 pandemic as well as from September to Mid-March when YFC was running “normally”!
All nominations need to be in by 28th September 2020.
To download an entry form, please click here
On the usual week that would have been the Staffordshire County Show, the highlight of the rural calendar in Staffordshire, YFC members from across the county have been busy entering virtual competitions organised by the Staffordshire Federation of Young Farmers Clubs. The competitions were along similar lines to what would normally take place during show week, except for Tug of War, which would have proven tricky to execute. Instead, using the county’s Facebook page as a platform, with over 4000 followers, five competitions were held. On Tuesday 26th May, which would usually be the Pre Show Reception, an evening held for over 250 invited guests to attend at the YFC Marquee, the YFC Clubs entered into two competitions.
Firstly, The Leslie T Chester Competition which is a challenge to write a 500 word story using 15 given words. The winner of this competition was Beckie Phillips of Uttoxeter Young Farmers Club, who wrote a very entertaining story about Hedgerow Farm and two resident goats called Hetty and Horatio who dreamt of flying in a spaceship! The Award for the Leslie T Chester Story will be presented to Beckie at the County AGM which is due to be held later in the autumn. The second and very popular competition held on Tuesday was the “YFC’s Got Talent” which is always greatly entertaining for guests usually at the Pre Show. There were six strong entries including a comedy sketch in a Two Ronnies style from Cheadle YFC and an entertaining “Summer Loving” Grease duet from Uttoxeter Young Farmers. After votes were counted via the Staffordshire YFC Facebook page as well as two independent judges giving their verdict, Eccleshall Young Farmers were declared the winners with a video compilation featuring members past and present from their Club, singing Bohemian Rhapsody, edited carefully by Daniel Moseley with flawless links, amusing costumes and varying vocals. Tuesdays competitions were very kindly supported by Abbotsholme School and HSKS Greenhalgh Accountants.
On Wednesday 27th May it was the turn of the younger members of YFC aged 17 and under to take the lead, with two competitions displaying their love of animals. The first competition was photos entitled “Pets we are Proud of” which included a Bearded Dragon, an array of dogs and cats and even a horse which regularly turns into a unicorn for local young children. The winner was declared as a prize-winning sheep put forward by Ellie Roobottom of Chase YFC. The second competition was “Best Trick with my Animal” where members were asked to submit photos or videos displaying their tricks. The winner was Heidi Clark of Uttoxeter Young Farmers with her spaniel Tilly who completed an extensive obstacle course in great enthusiastic canine fashion. The two competitions on Wednesday were kindly sponsored by Shires Vets, who would normally be part of the Staffordshire YFC marquee during the County Show week. Dave Allen and Jen Robinson of Shires Vets also judged the two classes and said “We would like to thank Staffordshire YFC for asking us to get involved in this year’s Virtual YFC County Show. All of the team here at Shires Vets are proud to continue to support such a brilliant group of young people. We have had a great selection to choose from so thank you to all the members who have taken part and submitted photos and videos for today’s competitions we have really enjoyed judging them, well done to the winners and we look forward to seeing you back in the marquee next year!”
One of the most popular competitions is usually held on the Thursday of the County Show, the Show Floats Competition, which always attracts a great crowd around the main ring at 2.30pm. The creative idea to make “Shoe Box” Show Floats was put forward by Leek Young Farmers and was soon made into a reality, with 17 entries taking to a “virtual main ring” created on the Staffordshire YFC Facebook page. Supporters of YFC have been giving some great feedback about how it was great to see the efforts made by YFC members during lockdown, cheering them up on social media newsfeeds, despite not being able to meet up weekly as they would normally. The 17 floats were judged again by the number of “likes” each float received as well as Dewi Parry, Chairman of the National Federation of Young Farmers Clubs, giving his top placings too. On a normal County Show year, YFC is always very well supported by BD Fuels of Hixon who generously sponsor this competition with prize and entry money for all clubs who take part. Despite the challenging climate, BD Fuels very kindly donated club prize money for 1st, 2nd and 3rd placed floats again this year, for which Staffordshire YFC is very grateful.
After a very active day on social media and a tense wait after “likes” and judges placings were combined, the results were Liv Larsson of Ashley YFC in first place with her “I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!” float which had some very familiar faces superimposed onto the contestants. The set up was complete with the Dingo Dollars Challenge and a helicopter Sky Dive setting! In second place was Beth Allen of Cheadle YFC who recreated that daytime favourite, “Supermarket Sweep!” The attention to detail with the aisles of food and trolleys inside the shoebox were a big hit with the judge. There were two entries taking joint third place, Jemima Brown of Abbotsholme YFC with the ski gameshow, The Jump and Emma Mayers of Ashley YFC with The Great British Bake Off.
Dewi Parry, judge said “The competition standard has been immense, all seventeen entries were fabulous and everyone made a great amount of effort!”
Staffordshire YFC currently has 430 members across ten clubs in Staffordshire. Club meeting nights usually run on a weekly basis, with a wide range of activities available for members of all ages including sports, public speaking, cinema and bowling trips, quizzes and farm walks. Although not all members are from an agricultural background, the clubs in Staffordshire are based in rural and isolated communities and provide the much needed social life, new skills and learning opportunities, for any young people aged between 10 and 26 years, with an interest in rural life and activities. The Covid 19 situation has meant that all planned competitions and events for the coming months are either cancelled or postponed, however Staffordshire YFC is continually adapting to the current situation and thinking of new ways to connect and provide a valuable service to its members.
For any further information about Staffordshire YFC’s Clubs and County during Covid 19, please contact Julia Taylor, County Organiser on 07841 422706 or email organiser@staffsyoungfarmers.org.uk .
To view all the entries into the above competitions on our Facebook page, click here
On Saturday 2nd May, Staffordshire County Federation of Young Farmers Clubs (SCFYFC) held a first in their history since forming in 1952. Their traditional Annual Rally, a day with over 40 competitions held on a farm site in the County, had to go virtual! As Staffordshire YFC clubs and members are no longer able to hold meeting and activities, many members have been busy helping in their local communities, some are working hard as key workers on the farm and for others, not having the YFC activities on a weekly basis has left a large gap in their social life. Forward thinking YFC members, who are all aged between 10 and 26 years, decided that they still wanted to give their members the opportunity to get creative in the various competitions and showcase their skills, and of course have some fun too. With County Organiser, Julia Taylor now relocated from the County Office based on the Showground at Stafford, to working from her dining room table at home, the “Staffordshire YFC Virtual Rally” received over 160 entries. Members of all ages, encouraged by their Club Rally Secretaries, got stuck into making and creating their entries and judges commented on how refreshing it was to see the effort and enthusiasm made.
Judging took place via the Staffordshire YFC Facebook page, which has over 4000 followers. The number of “likes” for each entry was calculated along with an independent judge’s placings to give the overall result.
For the younger members of Staffordshire YFC, there were two craft classes – Decorated Wellies and A Decorated Pint Glass. The winning decorated wellies from Leah Trubshaw of Chase YFC, were painted with chicks and displayed beautifully complete with a real chick. The winning glass was artistically turned into a dairy cow by Molly Bratton of Eccleshall YFC.
Floral Art is always a popular competition with YFC members of all ages, who usually compete at the Rally to win a chance to take part in the National Federation of Young Farmers Clubs (NFYFC) finals at the Malvern Autumn Show. Due to all NFYFC Competitions being postponed for the current competition’s year, this class was adapted to a “Spring Garden Bouquet” which saw twelve stunning entries, ranging from displays in bicycle baskets to quirky floral tributes in wellington boots! The winning display was from Pip Titley, Ashley YFC member, who also won the Floral Art Competition at the Rally the previous year. Her display was described by the judge, Victoria Nicholls, as “a bold and colourful display using some fantastic garden materials.”
Members of Staffordshire YFC also showed off their artistic flair, with a Farm Animal Canvas Class. The judge, Lisa Goldstraw, was wowed by the winning painting of a Grey Horse which was created by Alisa Bartley of Abbotsholme YFC, the only school club in Staffordshire.
Other classes included Deckchairs, A Fire Pit made from recycled materials and for those who like to be a little more active, a homemade YFC style Obstacle Course, which had to be videoed in action. Greg Large of Cheadle YFC won the this class with his very varied course including football skills and a roller, complete with commentary from younger brother Harry, which proved very popular with both the judges and online audience.
There was a number of photography classes with themes including “Farm Worker in Action”, “Success” and “Stuck in the Mud”. All saw a great number of entries, with some excellent skills and amusing angles being portrayed.
Will Freeman, County Chairman of Staffordshire YFC said “This years Rally has been very different, but I would like to congratulate all the members and say thank you for getting involved with such typical YFC enthusiasm. We shall be launching more “virtual” competitions and activities for our members to involved in whilst Staffordshire YFC is on lockdown including “Shoe Box Show Floats” for what would normally be the Staffordshire County Show week. More details will out very soon!”
Once all the results were collated, the clubs were placed as follows for the Overall Virtual Rally 2020:
1st – Uttoxeter Young Farmers Club
2nd – Eccleshall Young Farmers Club
3rd – Ashley Young Farmers Club
Staffordshire YFC currently has 430 members across ten clubs in Staffordshire. Club meeting nights usually run on a weekly basis, with a wide range of activities available for members of all ages including sports, public speaking, cinema and bowling trips, quizzes and farm walks. Although not all members are from an agricultural background, the clubs in Staffordshire are based in rural communities and provide the much needed social life, new skills and learning opportunities, for any young people aged between 10 and 26 years, with an interest in rural life and activities. The Covid 19 situation has meant that all planned competitions and events for the coming months are either cancelled or postponed, however Staffordshire YFC will be adapting the services it provides to its members and clubs are adapting their ways of meeting, to online meeting rooms and holding “virtual” get togethers. The Staffordshire YFC County Facebook Page has also hosted a family quiz and a “Play Your Cards Right” evening, arranged by Deputy Vice County Chairman, Toby Hall, with his creative wit and sense of humour keeping everyone feeling part of the organisation.
For any further information about Staffordshire YFC’s Clubs and County during Covid 19, please contact Julia Taylor, County Organiser on 07841 422706 or email organiser@staffsyoungfarmers.org.uk .
To view all the results from the day, please click here.
Staffordshire County Federation of Young Farmers Clubs have now formed a Covid-19 Response Committee comprising of the following officers: Jon Sarsfield (County Trustee), David Beswick (County Trustee), Philip Bourne (County President/County Trustee), David Heminsley (County Trustee), Kay Hulse (HR Officer/County Trustee), Margaret Bennett (County Trustee), Ange Woodward (County Treasurer/County Trustee), Sandra Hockenhull (Payroll Officer), Will Freeman (County Chairman), Amy Boothby (Vice County Chairman), Toby Hall (Deputy Vice County Chairman), George Hawley (Senior Deputy Vice President) and Julia Taylor (County Organiser)
In accordance with the Charity Commission and NFYFC guidance at this time, the above individuals will now form the Staffordshire YFC Covid-19 Response Committee, with the full authority to run the County Federation and make the essential management and operational decisions during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The committee will operate to safeguard the federation’s finances, plan operations/activities now and plan future operations/activities for the recovery period. They will be meeting “remotely” via video and there will be minutes taken to record decisions made and reports presented to the County Exec Committee on a regular basis via email.
The County Office at the County Showground is currently closed, with Julia Taylor, County Organiser working from home, Monday to Thursday. Julia can be contacted on email organiser@staffsyoungfarmers.org.uk or countyoffice@staffsyoungfarmers.org.uk
For any further information relating to Staffordshire YFC or if you need help with any aspects of YFC at this difficult time, please do not hesitate to contact William Freeman, County Chairman on 07425 621007 or Phil Bourne, County President on 07523 691669.
As the news of the Coronavirus develops and following today’s publication of the governments Coronavirus action plan, NFYFC have produced the attached advice note. Please click here for the details.
As and when the situation develops the NFYFC will publish further advice to each county federation and will ask that this is shared with each YFC as well.
Staffordshire YFC are holding their Annual Dinner Dance on Saturday 14th March 2020 in the Ingestre Suite on the County Showground, Stafford from 7pm onwards. The evening is set to be one to remember, with the theme of “Viva Las Vegas!” Guests will be entertained by Mark Clay, local Elvis Impersonator and also be able to have a flutter in the casino as part of the evening which usually attracts around 400 members and supporters of the Federation.
This year, the Annual Dinner Dance is very kindly supported by Howard Worth, Accountants. Andrew Hagues, Partner – Farming and Rural Business at Howard Worth said “We are delighted to support the work that the Staffordshire federation of young farmers carries out in supporting the future of next generation farmers. Howard Worth are pleased to sponsor this years Dinner Dance and look forward to working with farmers across Staffordshire in 2020 and beyond”.
To book a table, download a booking form here and return along with full payment no later than Monday 10th February 2020.
For more information, contact the YFC Centre on 01785 248645.
