Cheshire Farms
Introduction to Cheshire Farms Service
The newly formed Cheshire West & Chester Borough Council
(CWACBC) and Cheshire East Borough Council(CEBC) both
offer farming opportunities under the banner of Cheshire Farms
Service, presenting a range of farming opportunities
across the
County.
From the formation of the Service in 1909 following the
introduction of legislation to encourage the creation of
opportunities for people to farm on their own account, land was
acquired progressively between 1909 and 1935 by the former County
Council.
This was then developed as Statutory Smallholdings by the
provision of purpose built houses and buildings, or the conversion
of existing properties. Subsequently, substantial adaptation works
have been carried out by the former Council and its tenants to
provide modern facilities for the production of milk to meet the
changing needs of the farming industry.
Farms are located throughout Cheshire and extend to
approximately 9700 acres (4515 acres in CWACBC & 5174acres in
CEBC), currently including 118 let farms ranging from market
gardens to fully equipped dairy farms approaching 200
acres.
The Service links in to a national network of Council Farms
across England and Wales extending in total to approximately
285,788 acres, enabling not only 3,383 farming tenants to gain
their livelihood but connecting those authorities with a rural
communities providing a range of opportunities e.g. the
identification of affordable housing sites, improving public
access, the generation of renewable energy.
Within Cheshire, priority has been given to
restructuring the Estates to continue to meet the changing demands
of this industry, introducing a structure and types of farm that
help aspiring tenants to establish themselves, gain experience and
generate the potential to move on to achieve their ambitions.
The latest reorganisation projects include
building an entirely new farmstead to replace outdated facilities
premises and more about that project can seen on the new projects
page.
Knowing where to go for help and advice when
setting out in farming has always been difficult and confusing, and
to address just that issue, an industry led initiative developed in
conjunction with DEFRA and aptly named Fresh Start has been
launched and can be accessed via the
Fresh Start website. In addition you can obtain invaluable
information about opportunities in other areas and answers to some
frequently asked questions from ACES.