Resurrecting Newborough YFC
Resurrecting a Young Farmers Club takes sheer hard work and enthusiasm – Rachel Jones discovers how one Cambridgeshire club has been given a new lease of life.
The well-worn saying “You don’t have to be a farmer to be in Young Farmers”, means more to Newborough YFC than many clubs.
Ten years ago numbers were dwindling at the north Cambridgeshire club. A lot of older members had grown up and moved away, junior members were in short supply, meetings became less and less frequent and eventually it fizzled out.
A decade on and Newborough YFC looks very different. The club boasts a brand new 24-strong committee, they packed out the room for the club’s first AGM in 10 years and officially re-launched with a big fete in the heart of Newborough village. Not bad considering the farmer responsible for resurrecting the club isn’t a farmer at all.
Stacey Stringer was introduced to YFC by a friend when she was 16 and despite not coming from an agricultural background she was hooked. She developed a love of machinery, which she indulged working in the aftersales team at Simba, and went on to study land management at Northamptonshire uni. But there was always another project niggling at the back of her mind.
“If you’re from Newborough the nearest club was a half an hour drive away, which made it really hard for younger members to get to the meetings,” explains Stacey. “I had so much fun being in Young Farmers, it seemed like such a shame.”
In 2009, determined to see an active club serving youngsters in her part of the county, Stacey spoke to YFC county organiser Kim Bullen to see if she could get the ball rolling.
They tracked down Newborough YFC’s old bank account which, to their amazement, was still in credit. They secured a £500 grant from Cambridgeshire YFC trustees, convinced some local businesses to sponsor the club and even got £100 donations out of some generous local farmers. But the hardest bit, says Stacey, was definitely people power.
“Once you’ve got a committed committee you’re halfway there – then you have to organise them. When lots of people are friends, and you have to tell them to pull their socks up, it doesn’t always go down well.”
It took two years of meetings, preparation, research and delegation to take Newborough YFC from an idea to a fully functioning club, and there were more than a few moments of doubt along the way.
“There were times we were thinking, is it going to be worth it? Can we get support from the kids? From the parents? From local businesses?” said Kim. “It’s ok for me to be passionate about the project, but it’s got to come from the members. If they don’t have a passion, a vision and a willingness to ask for help, it won’t happen.”
Luckily for Newborough Stacey had all those qualities in spades, and despite the odd organisational headache she insists the journey has been a lot of fun.
“Meetings are hilarious and we’ve had more than our fair share of comical Vicar of Dibley moments, like the time we had to transport hundreds of balloons across the county for a ‘Guess how many balloons in the tractor’ competition.”
Now the club has officially re-launched the committee is concentrating their efforts on recruitment. “We’re really focusing on getting younger members, because that’s what killed the club the first time,” says Stacey.
One of the ways they’re doing that is by creating posts for a “Junior Chair” and two joint “Junior Vice Chairs”, to shadow the main team throughout the year. It’s an unusual set-up, but one that they hope will nurture committee members of the future. Bearing in mind the non-farming roots of their Chairman, they also have their sights set on enlisting city youngsters with a taste for the countryside.
“We’re out in the sticks in a small village, but Peterborough is right on our doorstep,” said Judith Jacobs – the club’s vice president and very own Kate Humble look-a-like. “There must be plenty of city dwellers who want to sample a bit of rural life.”
The committee is already a motley crew of skills, backgrounds and occupations. As well as farmers and farmers’ wives, Stacey counts a teacher, a trainee barrister, an ag dealer and students amongst her team.
“To say they’re keen is an understatement,” said county president Steven Earys. “To make something like this work you have to be committed, and there’s no-one more committed than Stacey. For a club that only had an AGM a few weeks before, to put on a launch event like they did is nothing short of extraordinary.”
www.cambridgeyoungfarmers.co.uk.
www.nfyfc.org.uk
Stacey’s top tips for resurrecting your YFC
1. Speak to your county organiser. They’ll know if there’s already a club in the area, and if not, can tell you about the next nearest ones. 2. You might think you can do it all but you can’t. Don’t underestimate the importance of having a good team, especially a good secretary and treasurer. 3. Set up a Facebook group. We’ve got 450 people on our page which really helps to spread the word about the club. 4. Spend some time building relationships with other YFC groups. You might think it’s going to be really competitive, but you’re all in it together. We’ve got really good relationships with clubs in Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire, and sometimes even run joint meetings. Some Huntingdon YFC members even came to our launch event! 5. Smile all the way. |
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