YFC Show Floats bring out the sunshine for memorable Days in History!
Staffordshire Young Farmers Clubs (YFC) take the main ring at the County Show by storm again this year, on Thursday 1st June. They held their annual Young Farmersâ Show Float Competition with the theme this year being âA Day in Historyâ, which meant for plenty of construction, colour and fun on each float as they created some of the well-remembered events from years gone by including World Cup 1966 and The Sinking of the Titanic. The sponsor of the competition, BD Fuels of Hixon and Staffordshire YFC President, George Hawley kindly judged the floats, before and during their journey into the main ring of the County Showground. This prestigious competition, the highlight of the YFC calendar and one of the most popular ran by Staffordshire Young Farmers, draws the largest crowd to the main ring when the floats, which have been worked on for many months, take to the parade led by a tractor on loan from Johnsons of Cheadle.
The Overall Float Competition was won by Chase YFC who recreated âABBA winning the Eurovisionâ which included a revolving stage, great costumes and an amphitheatre.  Second place was awarded to Abbotsholme YFC whoâs float re-created âThe Great Fire of Londonâ. As the only school club in Staffordshire, the members were able to show off their singing skills with a medley of âfire relatedâ tunes and their float had some fantastic artwork depicting the historical event. Leek YFC took third place with their float depicting âOlympics 2012 and Super Saturdayâ which was covered in famous sports and sport persons as well as a London Eye. Fourth place was awarded to Waterhouses YFC who had a moving Spitfire and their costumes were very in keeping with the theme of âVE Day!â
Lichfield YFC were awarded the Best Name Board Shield for their well-designed sign for their Float, which depicted Christmas Day. The 2nd placed Best Name Board was awarded to Ashley YFC who had a brightly painted board as part of their âMillenniumâ Float and then 3rd place was awarded to Leek YFC whoâs name board displayed the Olympic rings as part of their âOlympics 2012 Super Saturdayâ float.   This part of the competition was judged by Mr & Mrs T Williams, Vice Chairman and Mr & Mrs G Roobottom, Vice President of the Staffordshire & Birmingham Agricultural Society.
Members on the Show Floats from ten clubs entertained the huge crowds and judges as they circled the Main Ring. Staffordshire YFC thoroughly enjoy providing this entertainment to the general public and raising their profile, as a rural youth organisation which is all about fun, teamwork, learning and opportunities for anyone aged 10 to 28 years. They also enjoyed a great water fight at the end, which is the most favourite part for many members. After a very cold day at yesterdayâs Show, the afternoon of sunshine worked out very well and members were able to cool off and have fun.
Staffordshire YFC has had an amazing two days at this yearâs County Show. They have been promoting the opportunities that are offer to members and showcasing what their organisation is all about. The marquee and tea rooms have been full with visitors over the two days. Members from all clubs have had the opportunity to meet potential new members as well as chatting to former members who have enjoyed reminiscing with displays of past and present photos on display.
County Chairman Emily Cartmail commented that âWe have had a great couple of days here at the County Show. Itâs great to see YFC members enjoying themselves and taking part in so many competitions. Grateful thanks to all the supporters and helpers who volunteer over the two days and especially those involved directly in our Show Float Competition. It was great to see us draw such crowds around the main ring and in the grandstand.â
Pictures from the Show Float Competition can be found HERE
Results Sheet can be downloaded HERE
“A Day in History”
Best Name Board;
1st – Lichfield YFC (Christmas Day)
2nd – Ashley YFC (1st Day of the Millennium)
3rd – Leek YFC (Olympics 2012 – Super Saturday)
Floats;
1st – Chase YFC (ABBA Winning Eurovision)
2nd – Abbotsholme YFC (Great Fire of London)
3rd – Leek YFC (Olympics 2012 – Super Saturday)
4th – Waterhouses YFC (VE Day)
Results Sheet can be downloaded HERE
Pictures from the Show Float Competition can be found HERE
After a brilliant first day at the County Show, Staffordshire Young Farmers held their Male and Female Tug of War in the Main Ring on Wednesday evening, 31st May.  A full grandstand of supporters from across the County and other clubs also turned out in force to watch a hard-fought competition. Many of the teams have been training three times a week since the new year and their hard work and efforts paid off.
With a record number of entries in both competitions and following a great standard of pulling the results on the evening for the male competition were: Waterhouses YFC team beat Eccleshall A YFC to the 1st place position. Eccleshall A YFC were the runners-up and Cheadle YFC took 3rd place.
In the female competition, Waterhouses YFC again took the 1st place after a close finish with Cheadle YFC coming 2nd. Leek YFC came in with a closely fought 3rd place.
The 1st and 2nd placed teams from each competition will now go forward to the West Midlands Round of the competition at being held on Saturday 1st July at Hanbury Show, Worcestershire.
Tug of War remains an ever popular competition which encourages members to work together as a team with long terms benefits of improvement of fitness, strength and technique as well as discipline, enjoyment, sportsmanship, respect and teamwork.
Please click HERE for photos from the evening
The Stafford County Show saw Staffordshire Young Farmers Clubs (YFC) inside their marquee with a fully packed offering of activities for everyone to get involved in along with many displays of the competitions and achievements of the members during the last 12 months. The show also saw the return of the Club Display Competition with YFC members from all ten clubs using their creative skills to create a display promoting their club in a space no larger than 1m2.
The judges for this competition were Charlotte Rigby of HSKSG Accountants & Ailish Ross, West Midlands Area Chairperson, following a difficult deliberation with such excellent displays, the final results were, 1st place Stone YFC, with Eccleshall YFC 2nd and in 3rd place were Lichfield YFC.
Please click HERE for photos of the Club Displays
On Tuesday 23rd 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 180 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 âYFCâs Got Talentâ Competition, where competitors presented any talents of their choice from singing and dancing to a comedy sketch. The judges, Vanessa Roe, former Staffordshire County Chairperson & Steve Cartmail, currently the County Chairperson of The Staffordshire and Birmingham Agricultural Society, commented that the four acts they had judged were all fantastic, talented and should be congratulated for having the courage to come up on stage and perform.
After the acts had performed, the winners were announced as Uttoxeter JNFU with a very entertaining double act, which saw Toby Hall playing the keyboard and Rob Mollatt taking to the microphone. Their performance involved lots of audience participation and they even invited the County Treasurer, Angela Woodward on stage! Second place went to Abbotsholme YFC with Eva performing a beautiful solo to David Guettaâs âTitaniumâ accompanied by a seamless choreographed dance routine by Anais. Eccleshall YFC entertained with a famous Two Ronnies, Mastermind sketch featuring Dan Moseley & Tom Bowers which saw the audience laughing both at them and with them.
Staffordshire Young Farmers Club along with South Staffordshire Water also presented a charity cheque to Midlands Air Ambulance following a very successful Christmas Tractor Run held in December 2022 which saw 100 tractors take to the roads around the Blithfield Reservoir Area.
During the evening there was also a presentation made by one of the local clubs, Ashley YFC who explained about their fundraising over the last 12 months with two events that they organised. One event was a Santa Sleigh around the villages and neighborhood’s of Ashley and the second event was a Pie and Quiz Night. The club raised valuable funds for two charities which the members wished to support this year – Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) and Motor Neurone Disease Association.
There was also a presentation made by Polly Baines, Chairperson of the Staffordshire Young Farmers Ambassadors (YFA) as she kept everyone up to date with the NFYFC YFC Travel Programme, which has trips available from September 2023. YFC members can apply for travel opportunities all over the world from Rural Youth Seminars, working Scholarships to a Ski Trip.
The Leslie T Chester competition results were also presented for the best âBlogâ writing competition, with members having to write a 300 – 500 word blog to the theme âMy YFC Journeyâ. First place went to Emily Cartmail of Eccleshall YFC, second place to Polly Baines of Uttoxeter JNFU with Natalie Bradley of Eccleshall 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 31st May â Thursday 1st June where Staffordshire YFC members will be promoting their clubs inside the YFC Marquee, erected next to the YFC Office on the showground.  Members will also be competitive on Wednesday evening as they âtake the strainâ 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 âA Day in Historyâ this year.
Emily Cartmail, County Chairperson said âTonight has been a fantastic evening to show case the talents and hard work of all our members, from raising money for various charities to entertaining the audience with comedy, singing and dancing. We are excited for this yearâs County Show, all the clubs are so busy putting time, effort and skill into the show floats and their club displays to showcase what they as a YFC club are proud of. Personally, I cannot wait to see what the clubs have got in store for this yearâs County Show!â
To view an album of photos from the Pre Show Reception, please click here.
The Pre Show Reception saw the results from the following competitions:
Leslie T Chester ‘Blog’ Writing Competition
1st â Emily Cartmail â Eccleshall YFC
2nd â Polly Baines – Uttoxeter JNFU
3rd â Natalie Bradley – Eccleshall YFC
YFCâs Got Talent Competition
1st â Uttoxeter JNFU – Toby Hall & Rob Mollatt – Entertaining double act with singing and keyboard music
2nd â Abbotsholme YFC â Eva & Anais with their brilliantly choreographed dance routine and solo singing
3rd – Eccleshall YFC â Dan Moseley & Tom Bowers entertaining with the famous Two Ronnies ‘Mastermind’ sketch
A full breakdown of the results can be found HERE
Staffordshire County Federation of Young Farmers Clubs (SCFYFC) County Rally was held on Saturday, 13th May at The Hollies Farm, Woodseaves by kind permission of Sandra and Roy Hockenhull.  The day was filled with warm sunshine and blue skies and is the highlight of the YFC competitions calendar with over 40 classes entered by the members from across Staffordshire. Competitions included Live Mocktail Making, Recycled Metalwork, Photography, Showstopper Cake, Festival Bunting, Items made from 3 Bottles, Wildlife Quiz and a Total Wipe Out Challenge in the Main Ring during the afternoon. Farm Safety skills were also put to the test with the Tractor Handling and Telehandler Competition.
The day was kindly sponsored by over 55 local companies and supporting organisations, with the main sponsors being IAE, Malcolm Harrison and Johnsons of Cheadle.
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: âCaught in the Fishers Netâ with the winning entry created by Keira of Ashley YFC.  In the Intermediate Class, the criteria was to create an exhibit to the theme âSteam Punkâ and this was won by Rebekah of Eccleshall YFC. The Senior Class required competitors to create an exhibit to the theme âUpcycled Item destined for the binâ, which was won by Lucy of Eccleshall 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 very wet and messy âTotal Wipeoutâ 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 activities including carrying the infamous Greasy Pole Challenge and a Buggy-Kart Race. 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 Challenge being Chase YFC.
The evening began with the highly competitive Junior Tug of War competition, which is also a National Competition for 202. The highest two place teams go forward to the West Midlands Area round on 1st July.  6 teams took part with members aged between 12 and 17 years who have been training hard for many weeks. The team from Waterhouses YFC pulled their way to victory taking 1st place with Eccleshall YFC coming a close second. The day was rounded off by the ever-popular Mixed Tug of War competition, which saw 10 teams taking part, and Cheadle YFC, taking the silverware for the day, beating Leek YFC in the final.
The day was rounded off with announcement of the results from all the Rally Competitions and presentation of Trophies and Awards. The Overall Cup for the day was won by Ashley YFC.
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 are behind the scenes ensuring that the day runs smoothly â made up of county officers, members, vice presidents and supporters of Staffordshire YFC.
Emily Cartmail, County Chairman of Staffordshire YFC said âI am really proud of all our members, their enthusiasm and talents on the day were well and truly on display. We had a brilliant turnout of supporters who enjoyed a great day of Staffordshire YFC at its best, complete with sunshine too.  We are so grateful for all the support given by the sponsors, parents, members and helpers â we just couldnât hold this kind of event without them!â
The federation currently has over 640 members aged 10 â 28 years, across 10 active clubs in Staffordshire.   Club programmes are currently filled with busy preparation for the Staffordshire County Show being held 31st May â 1st 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 filled with exhibits and displays from this yearâs Rally as well as information about every club in Staffordshire and how to join.  Competitions held in the Main Ring over the two days include the county round of the NFYFC Male and Female Tug of War Finals and the very popular Show Floats Competition which this year is themed as âA Day in History.â
To view photos from the Rally Day, please head to our photo gallery, by clicking here.
The Staffordshire County Federation of Young Farmers Clubs (SCFYFC) County Rally is being held on Saturday, 13th May at The Hollies Farm, Woodseaves by kind permission of Sandra and Roy Hockenhull. The day is the highlight of the competitions calendar for SCFYFC, with over 40 competition classes taking place including Mocktail Making, Photography, Showstopper Cakes, Wildlife Quiz and a Total Wipe Out Challenge in the Main Ring during the afternoon. Farm Safety skills will also be put to the test with the Tractor Handling and Telehandler Competition.
In the evening there will be a Hog Roast, Licensed Bar and Tug Of War Competitions including the NFYFC Mixed Junior Competition, which sees the two winning teams take on the teams from across the West Midlands Area of YFC in July. The day was kindly sponsored by over 55 local companies and supporting organisations, with the main sponsors being IAE, Malcolm Harrison and Johnsons of Cheadle.
Spokesperson for main sponsors IAE, manufacturers of livestock handling and housing equipment, equestrian stabling, steel fencing and shelters said âWe are thrilled to be supporting the Staffordshire YFC Annual Rally and are very much looking forward to attending the event on the day. Both in and out of the workplace, we recognise that young people are the future of our industry and therefore we have chosen to support the Rally because it is an excellent opportunity for young people to come together and participate in a variety of competitions whilst having fun.â
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 will be helping out behind the scenes to ensure that the day runs so smoothly â made up of county officers, vice presidents, supporters and members of Staffordshire YFC.
Spokesperson for main sponsor and local machinery and tractor dealer, Johnsons of Cheadle said âWe are proud to sponsor Staffordshire YFCâs 2023 Rally. We sponsor the Young Farmers Clubs to show our appreciation for the support theyâve given to us and we see this as helping the future of agriculture.â
After the final pulls of the Tug of War in the evening, there will be a Presentation of Awards for the silverware which includes the Sports Cup, Tug of War Shield, Rose Bowl and Overall Rally Competitions. There will also be an award for the Most Improved Club, gaining the most points accumulated compared to the previous year, to encouraged members and clubs to build on their successes for the future.
Malcolm Harrison, family-owned Commercial Vehicles & Plant trading company are the third main sponsor of the Annual Rally. Their spokesperson said âThe Annual Rally Day for Staffordshire YFC is a fantastic display of talent and skill from rural young people and we are very proud to support them.â
The federation currently has over 645 members aged 10 â 28 years, across ten busy active clubs. YFC Members across Staffordshire are now busy preparing by making their many exhibits for the static classes at the Rally as well as training for the Tug of War Competitions. In addition to this, Show Float Building is also a weekly activity at the moment with clubs building their masterpieces in readiness for the Show Float Competition at this yearâs County Show.
For full details about this years Annual Rally including timetables and rules, please click here.
This year Stockman of the Year competition was held bkp Atkin Farms, Field Hall, Uttoxeter and also travelling to neighbouring dairy farm, bkp of the Mollatt Family, Moorhouse Farm.  7 clubs took part on the day, which each member having to judge, place and give reasons in the following categories, beef, dairy, breeding ewes and butchers lambs. The day was kindly sponsored by 
The results were:
Young Stockjudge of the Year
1st â Waterhouses YFC, 2nd – Uttoxeter JNFU, 3rd – Ashley YFC
Stockman of the Year
1st â Chase YFC, 2nd – Waterhouses YFC, 3rd – Uttoxeter JNFU
Junior Stockjudge of the YearÂ
1st â Tom (Waterhouses YFC), joint 2nd – Adele (Waterhouses YFC) & Matt (Uttoxeter JNFU)
Intermediate Stockjudge of the Year
1st â Jono (Chase YFC), 2nd – Robbie (Chase YFC), 3rd – Liam (Waterhouses)
Senior Stockjudge of the Year
1st â Rob (Uttoxeter JNFU), 2nd – Pete (Waterhouses), 3rd – Will (Eccleshall)
Prize money on the day was kindly donated by Staffordshire & Birmingham Agricultural Society.
Photos from the day can be found HERE
