20 FARM NEWS AUG / SEP 2021 • farmers-mart . co . uk
NEW PROJECT HELPS FARMERS TAKE BACK CONTROL
Farmers are being encouraged to use a new two-minute tool to reassess the health of their business , work-life balance and financial affairs in easy , manageable chunks .
DEVELOPED in conjunction with a group of farmers in Cornwall , Two-Minute Farmer addresses all the complexities of modern farming life , but in a straightforward and practical way . It allows farmers to assess 10 elements of their daily lives which affect individual success and wellbeing , identifying areas for improvement and linking to a knowledge hub to help make positive changes .
“ We started out by holding informal meetings in a local pub and what emerged was that everyone needed different things – the complexity was immense and it is only increasing ,” explains Harriet Housam , who led the project with support from Stephens Scown and Agri-tech Cornwall . “ What was also clear was the mental element of feeling overwhelmed , so we created the Tractor Wheel of Life to consider the key questions which affect farmers ’ business and physical wellbeing . In this way we can break big complex issues into two-minute chunks so they ’ re less overwhelming .”
The 10 elements of the wheel are ;
• Future planning ( including succession )
• Production
• Paperwork ( and compliance )
• Money ( and finance )
• Environment
• Lifestyle ( physical and mental wellbeing )
• Communication ( having a network and local relationships )
• Assets ( do you make the most of your farm ’ s assets ?)
• Management
• Skills ( technical and soft skills ) Farmers score each element out of 10 , with zero meaning that area requires the most work and 10 indicating an area of complete satisfaction . They then plot those scores on a wheel chart to see if it creates a balanced wheel – which will roll easily - or a very spiky one , indicating that there are problem areas to address . “ A healthy and resilient
Sarah Counter
business is all about balance ,” says Miss Housam .
“ And the feedback on the tool has been really good . It has helped farmers to step back and make real positive changes – to impact on someone ’ s life like that is really rewarding .”
Having proved the concept in Cornwall , Miss Housam now wants to roll it out across the UK and to create an app . This could also be used to collect anonymous data on regional trends in how farmers are faring , which could then feed into suitable knowledge exchange in regional roadshows . “ Farmers are already using the Wheel as a baseline for meetings with consultants and accountants , and we ’ re working with a range of partners to provide support like the Farming Health Hub .”
Harriet , Nick and Sarah
Nick Dymond
This brings together private , public and voluntary organisations to provide advice , support and guidance to farming communities on all aspects of their physical , mental and business health . “ With the likes of RABI and FCN at the top tier , the Wellbeing in Farming Forum in the middle , and informal farmer meetings at the base , there are clear pathways for information to be passed both up and down ,” explains Miss Housam .
Sarah Counter , who runs Land to Sea CBT and the Farm Fit project with Fairwinds Cornwall , says that collaboration between different farm health organisations is vital to reaching farmers in need . “ We ’ re only really now starting to engage in a narrative about mental health in farming , and little tools like
Panel – The farmer ’ s perspective
Nick Dymond is a pig and arable farmer near Truro , Cornwall , and was part of the original pub meetings with Miss Housam . “ It ’ s a brilliant concept and I think it ’ s really helpful to farmers ,” he says . “ With all the pressures that everyone from time to time struggles with , it ’ s useful to step back and see the help and support that ’ s out there . About 90 % of farmers don ’ t recognise the very wide skillset it takes to run a successful farming business – often they ’ re very good at some skills but need prompting to identify areas of weakness and address them .”
When Mr Dymond filled in the Tractor Wheel of Life , he was expecting a well-rounded result . “ I was pretty confident that things were pretty much up and together but I soon realised that my Wheel wasn ’ t very balanced ,” he explains . “ It made me realise that work life balance was a big area to focus on .”
It also made him re-evaluate his farming system , to trust his instincts more and implement regenerative farming . “ Sometimes you need to take your foot off the gas a little bit and work with mother nature . Financial pressures often prevent farmers from changing , but by getting more balance the financial pressures sort themselves out .
“ The farm can be a demanding mistress – it takes all your time and all your cash and still asks for more . Taking part in Two-Minute Farmer was the kick I needed ,” he says .
the Tractor Wheel of Life are really helpful . It ’ s a light-touch approach , using farming language , which can get people to think about things a bit differently ,” she explains .
“ A lot of people are faced with stress and worry , as well as trying to have a work-life balance while meeting all of the demands in farming . If you break it down into smaller chunks it can feel a lot more manageable .”
For more information visit www . 2minutefarmer . co . uk