Talent and Teamwork showcased with Staffordshire YFC

On Tuesday 24^th May, Staffordshire Young Farmers Club (YFC) hosted their Pre-Show Reception which was kindly sponsored by Abbotsholme School, RBA Wealth Management and HSKSG Accountants at the Ingestre Suite on the County Showground.  The evening was attended by over 200 sponsors, supporters and invited guests of the Federation and marks the start of the Staffordshire County Show with many representatives of the rural community coming together.

The evening proved to be very entertaining with the ‘YFC’s Got Talent’ Competition, where competitors presented any talents of their choice from dancing, comedy to playing the violin. The judges, George Hawley & Graham Hollinshead commented that the six acts they had judged were all very entertaining, talented and unique in their own way!

After the acts had performed, the winners were announced as Abbotsholme YFC with Lyrica and Anais performing a superb and well-choreographed dance routine to the song “Unstoppable” by Sia.  The judges said that the girls had great musicality and timing.  Second place went jointly to Eccleshall YFC & Uttoxeter JNFU.  Eccleshall YFC entertained with a pub sketch scene featuring Dan Moseley & Harry Bowers with plenty of jokes about life in general.  Rob Mollatt & Toby Hall from Uttoxeter JNFU certainly got the laughs with their ‘two women at a wedding’ sketch including some very questionable side to side dancing!

Staffordshire Young Farmers along with South Staffordshire Water also presented a charity cheque to Midlands Air Ambulance following a very successful Christmas Tractor Run held in December 2021.  This was also followed by a second cheque presentation by Staffordshire YFC and Emily Meakin, following the JW Meakin Tractor Run, which they organised alongside the Meakin Family in March this year, in memory of John Meakin.  This Tractor Run raised money for Katherine House Hospice, who cared for John during his short illness.

During the evening there was a presentation by Ashley YFC about their fundraising over the last 12 months, charity cheques were presented on stage to Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) and Midlands Air Ambulance.

Polly Baines, Chairlady of the Staffordshire Young Farmers Ambassadors (YFA), kept everyone up to date with the NFYFC YFC Travel Programme, with trips available from September 2022.  YFC members can apply for travel opportunities all over the world from Rural Youth Seminars, homestays in Nepal to working in New Zealand.  Jack Salt of Ashley YFC has been successful in applying for the Autumn Seminar in Ireland this year.  The aim of the trip is that the participants gain knowledge of LGBTI+ inclusion and develop skills to facilitate respectful dialogue on the topic in rural communities and rural youth organisations.

The Leslie T Chester competition results were also presented for the best 500 word story using 15 specified words – lateral, daffodil, camembert, magnitude, obtuse, birthday, darkness, spectacles, flight, photograph, special, question, umbrella, cold & alpaca.  First place went to Serena Gough of Eccleshall YFC, second place to Kate Oakes of Chase YFC with Beckie Philips of Uttoxeter JNFU coming third.

The evening was a great way for members and guests to start thinking ahead to the Staffordshire County Show, which is being held on Wednesday 1^st – Thursday 2^nd June where Staffordshire YFC members will be promoting their clubs inside the YFC Marquee, erected next to the YFC Building on the showground.   Members will also be competitive on Wednesday evening as they “take the strain” in the main ring at 7.30pm with the Male and Female Tug of War Competition as well as on Thursday afternoon at 2.15pm with the very popular Show Floats, to the theme of “West End Musicals” this year.

Toby Hall, County Chairman said “Tonight has been a fantastic evening to show case the talents and hard work of all our members, from performing their many skills and talents on stage to the teamwork behind the various charity fundraising activities.  We are excited for this year’s County Show, which will be celebrating 70 years of Staffordshire YFC along with the Queens Jubilee.  We would love to see lots of current and past members over the two days of the Show and any supporters of our organisation visit the marquee and our tearooms where there will be a warm welcome and refreshments for everyone.”

Photos from the evening, kindly taken by Sally Elkin of Rocester Camera Club, can be found by clicking here.

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ABBA Tribute Night

Staffordshire YFC alongside the Staffordshire and Birmingham Agricultural Society joined together for the first time in history to hold a joint Tribute Act evening, with the band Re-Bjorn, A Tribute to ABBA.  The evening saw over 370 guests enjoyed a hog roast served by P S Sargeant of Bramshall, IceCream from Red Lion Farm, Haughton and a dancefloor filled from the moment the band took to the stage.

To view photos from the evening, please click here.

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Rally 2022 – Read all about it!

Staffordshire County Federation of Young Farmers Clubs (SCFYFC) County Rally was held on Saturday, 7^th May at Hall Farm, Pipe Ridware by kind permission of RJ Smith & Son.  After a two year gap it was fantastic to see ten strong Staffordshire YFC Clubs compete against each other on the day in over 40 competition classes.  The Rally Day started and finished with bright sunshine and saw a great turnout of over 350 members along with sponsors and supporters to cheer on their Clubs in the various competitions.  Members have been preparing weeks ahead to enter the Static Classes ranging from making “Royal Picnic Basket,” creating a Tombola Drum, sculpting a Recycled Garden Feature and four photography categories.  In addition to the displayed classes there were many opportunities for members to compete in active competitions on the day including a Water Catching Challenge, “Build a Tent” Competition and competing in the all-time favourite ‘Total Wipeout’ in order to try and win some silverware at the end of the Day.

Two of the National Federation of Young Farmers Clubs (NFYFC) Competitions were also held on the day, including the Floral Art.  In the Junior Class, competitors were required to create an exhibit to the theme: ‘British TV Programmes’ with the winning entry coming from Jessica Yardley, Eccleshall YFC.  In the Intermediate Class, the requirement was to create an exhibit to the theme “My Favourite Musical” from Lucy Hockenhull, Eccleshall YFC.  The Senior Class required competitors to create an exhibit to the theme “Chinese New Year”, which was won by Beth Allen of Cheadle YFC.  The three members will all go forward to compete in the NFYFC Finals held at the Malvern Autumn Show in September along with the runners up in each age category as well.

The main ring held a huge “Total Wipeout” Competition with teams of up to 6 members from each club taking part.  This was a great success, with members loving the assault course of various challenges including carrying a Custard Cup to the other side of the main ring intact whilst having water and inflatables launched at them! All the main ring fun involved lots of water and enthusiasm from members with overall winners of the Sports Cup from this competition along with the Top Table Royal Relay being Eccleshall YFC.

Into the evening the highly competitive Junior Tug Of War competition, which is also a National Competition for 2022 sees the highest two place teams go forward to the West Midlands Area round in June.   Members aged between 12 and 17 years from Waterhouses YFC took 1^st place with Cheadle YFC coming a close second.  The day was rounded off by the ever-popular Mixed Tug of War competition, which saw 9 teams taking part, and Waterhouses YFC, taking the silverware for the day, beating Uttoxeter JNFU in the final.

Following the Tug of War Competitions, during which a hog roast kindly donated by Packington Pork was served, the day was rounded off with announcement of the results from all the Rally Competitions and presentation of Trophies and Awards by the host, Mr Colin Smith. To view the full set of results please click https://staffsyoungfarmers.org.uk/rally-2022-results/

The day was kindly sponsored by over 60 local companies and supporting organisations, with the main sponsors being Shires Vets, Malcolm Harrison and Johnsons of Cheadle.  The Rally day brings together the rural community of Staffordshire and could not run so well without the support of the judges, stewards and catering committee.  Over 100 volunteers behind the scenes ensure that the day runs so smoothly – made up of county officers, vice parents and members of Staffordshire YFC.

Toby Hall, County Chairman of Staffordshire YFC said “I am really proud of all our members, some of whom have never been to a Rally before and so they just didn’t know what to expect.  Their enthusiasm and talents on the day were well and truly on display.  Staffordshire YFC is so grateful for all the support given by the sponsors, parents, members and helpers – we just couldn’t hold this kind of event without them!”

The federation currently has over 650 members aged 10 – 28 years, which is higher than pre pandemic times.  Clubs across Staffordshire are now busy preparing for the Staffordshire County Show being held 1^st – 2^nd June which is their main marketing event of the year.  The YFC Marquee which is erected next to the YFC Office on the Showground will be themed as “70 yrs of Staffordshire YFC”.  Competitions held in the Main Ring over the two days include the Male and Female Tug of War Finals and the very popular Show Floats Competition which this year is themed as “West End Musicals.”

To view photos from the Rally please click as below:

Photos from the Day click here

Photos from the Tug of War click here

Photos from the Presentation of Awards click here

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Top judging in Stockman of the Year

On Sunday 24^th April Staffordshire YFC held their second Stockjudging event, Young Stockjudge and Stockman of the Year Competition, hosted by kind permission of The Rushton Family, Upper Leese Hill Farm, Kingstone. The day was generously supported by KiwiKit Roxan and members were also able to win prize money kindly donated by The Staffordshire and Birmingham Agricultural Society.  There were eight teams taking part from across Staffordshire, with teams of twelve competitors judging four rings of animals – Dairy cows, Breeding Ewes, Butchers Lambs and Beef Cattle and placed them an order of merit, followed by delivering positive comparative reasons to the master judges.

Stockjudging is one of the many competitions organised by Staffordshire YFC and gives members the opportunity to utilise their skills with regards to judging and understanding of the make-up of an animal, market demands, and communication, observation and presentation skills which are transferrable in their future career or education path.  During Covid 19 in 2020 and 2021, these competitions did move to a virtual online format, but as with many aspects of YFC, members thrive on meeting fellow members from across the county, with Sunday being no exception.

Will Roobottom of KiwiKit Roxan attended the day and said “KiwiKit Roxan Bring New Zealand Solutions to British Farmers, Fencing Contractors and Veterinary Surgeons. Our aim is to provide good quality product that will do the job at the right price with a first-class service to our customers.  We were pleased to see the next generation of young farmers taking part in this competition, giving them a valuable skillset and enabling them to succeed.”

The results on the day were as follows:

28 and Under Member – 1^st Rob Mollatt, Uttoxeter; 2^nd Sally Belfield, Waterhouses; 3^rd Phil Wilson, Uttoxeter.

21 and Under Member – Joint 1^st Liam Poyser and Peter Cotton, Waterhouses; 3^rd Andrew Hill, Leek.

18 and Under Member – 1^st Hollie Kelly, Chase; Joint 2^nd George Large, Cheadle and Jessica Yardley, Eccleshall

Once the team points had been combined, the clubs were positioned as follows:

Overall Young Stockjudge Team of the Year – 1^st Uttoxeter JNFU; 2^nd Waterhouses YFC, 3^rd Lichfield YFC

Overall Stockman of the Year Team (All points combined) – 1st Uttoxeter JNFU, 2^nd Waterhouses YFC, 3^rd Leek YFC

After the competition, a composite team made up of the highest placed competitors in each age category will go forward and represent Staffordshire YFC at the West Midland Area eliminator on being held later in the year, hosted by Worcestershire YFC.

To view a selection of photos from the day, please click here.

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Dairy Stockjudging Results

15 teams across the Staffordshire YFC clubs took part in the County Dairy Stockjudging Competition, kindly hosted by The Stone Family, Onecote Grange, Onecote on Thursday 7^th April and sponsored by HJ Lea Oakes.  Teams consisting of six members judged rings of Friesian Dairy Cows, placing them in orders of merit and giving reasons to the master judges.

This skilled competition, one of the many Staffordshire YFC run throughout the year, helps members with observation, their understanding of the make-up of the animal, market demands, communication and presentation skills.  The Junior members judge, place and give reasons on 4 animals, the Intermediate members judge, place and give reasons on 6 animals and the Senior members judge, place and give reasons on 4 animals as well as using the linear method of assessing characteristics.

Following two years of no competitions of this type, the members enjoyed a great evening with a high standard of cows to judge.  The overall results were a winning team from Waterhouses YFC with Ashley YFC taking second place, and in joint third place, it was Eccleshall YFC; Lichfield YFC and Uttoxeter JNFU.    Individually, members will go forward to represent Staffordshire at the NFYFC Finals being held on Friday 15^th July at the Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate.  They will be as follows: Seniors – Mark Whitehurst of Uttoxeter and Vic Astle of Waterhouses; Intermediates – Peter Cotton of Waterhouses YFC and Ruby Oulton of Ashley YFC; Juniors – Tom Bratton of Eccleshall and Tom Gray of Lichfield.

The evening was concluded with the presentation of awards along with refreshments of filled jacket potatoes, kindly sponsored by HJ Lea Oakes.

For photos from the evening, please click here.

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