Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Half the UK would love a ‘simple country life’
ESCAPING the rat race and living on a smallholding is the lifestyle dream of almost half the population, a survey conducted by leading rural insurer NFU Mutual reveals.
For most of the people wanting to become smallholders, the main reasons are living more sustainably or becoming self-sufficient (58 per cent), having a healthy lifestyle (54 per cent) and having a great way to spend retirement (50 per cent).
Other reasons for wanting a smallholder lifestyle include having a better way of life for the family (39 per cent), returning to countryside roots (27 per cent) and being able to combine a profession while running a smallholding (16 per cent).
Chris Walsh, farming insurance specialist at NFU Mutual, said: “It’s great to see that so many people yearn for a simple country lifestyle in our fastpaced 21st-century world.
“With the new year bringing a fresh opportunity to pursue dreams and make resolutions, the lure of the countryside seems to be front of mind for many.”
However, as the UK’s main rural insurer, protecting thousands of smallholdings from the perils of fire, storm, floods, accidents and livestock diseases, Mr Walsh said the firm was “well aware” of the need for people to think carefully before taking the plunge.
“While the reality of a smallholding lives up to the dream for many people, working the land has many challenges – particularly if you have no previous farming experience,” he added.
The survey of 322 people, conducted by Join the Dots on behalf of NFU Mutual, also reveals that when it comes to turning their dreams into reality, 44 per cent say they are unable to make them come true because of the high costs involved in buying and setting up a smallholding.
Realising that running their own piece of land can be tough, respondents say they would be deterred from that lifestyle because of workload (22 per cent), pressure dividing time between smallholding and family life (21 per cent) or having to learn new skills (20 per cent). These warnings are confirmed by existing smallholders, with only 24 per cent reporting that their land generates an income.
Australian-born Matt Eckford and Lisa Abrey both quit busy banking jobs in London to take over the running of Coombe Farm in Goodleigh, near Barnstaple, Devon. Since becoming smallholders, they have established a successful bed and breakfast business, which is supplied with bacon and sausages from the couple’s herd of pigs, fruit and vegetables from the garden, freshly-laid eggs and their own homecured charcuterie.
Lisa said: “Unless you’ve come from a farming background, there’s going to be lots of things that you have to learn about the new job that you’re doing. You’re going to make mistakes along the way but, actually, that’s OK, you can learn from those. Because we’re living in a rural area, our neighbours have been really kind in helping us with things we have needed to learn, and that’s been really useful for us.
“For someone starting out, the main thing I would say is that you should have a plan, particularly a financial plan, of what you need to get going, and for that to be realistic. That’s something that we didn’t do, and it’s all worked out OK, but it took longer than we thought it was going to take.”
She added: “The best thing about it is that you get to live in a really lovely place and we get to spend a lot more time with our little boy, Bruce, than we would if we were working in the city. He gets to have a much more outdoor, interactive upbringing than he would have living in the city and it’s just a really nice place to be, compared to being sat in an office for hours every day.”
NFU Mutual estimates there are approximately 45,000 smallholdings across the UK, ranging in size up to around 12 acres.
Unless you’ve come from
a farming background, there’s going to be lots of things you have to learn
LISA ABREY