Western Morning News (Saturday)
Morpurgo’s farm charity handed a big funding boost
ACHILDREN’S charity founded in Devon by War Horse author Sir Michael Morpurgo has been given a huge post-pandemic boost.
Farms For City Children has been announced as one of nine UK charities set to benefit from the NFU Mutual Charitable Trust’s latest round of donations, totalling £105,700.
This cash injection follows £750,000 of funding announced in February, after the insurer pledged additional funding to help support charities and their communities during Covid-19.
Michael and Clare Morpurgo first founded Farms For City Children at Nethercott House near Iddesleigh in 1976. The charity provides children from disadvantaged communities with the opportunity to live and work on a farm for a week, in the heart of the countryside. Since it was started, more than 100,000 children have visited one of its three farms - Nethercott House, Lower Treginnis in Pembrokeshire, and Wick Court in Gloucestershire.
Jane Foy, head of fundraising at Farms For City Children, said the Charitable Trust’s £10,000 donation will be used to offer 60% subsidies.
“In 2020 we had to adapt quickly to unexpected changes due to Covid,” she explained. “Happily, this sudden, unpredicted change and inability to host residential visits provided us with the opportunity to work with a wider range and diverse group of children, who have enjoyed newly introduced countryside and farm day visits.
“In addition to our usual work with primary schools, we began working with groups of young people based within our farms’ local communities. Most of these young people are not currently in mainstream education and are facing particularly challenging circumstances. They have benefitted hugely from their time with us on the farms and there have been some lifechanging outcomes.
“We want to continue providing transformational farm experiences for children and young people which NFU Mutual’s funding will help us to achieve.”
Other charities set to benefit from the latest round of funding include the National Federation of Young Farmers’ Clubs (£36,000), Air Ambulances UK (£10,000) and the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution (£5,000).
Already this year, the NFU Mutual Charitable Trust has made donations totalling over £855,700, and expects overall donations during 2021 to reach at least £950,000 by the end of the year.
The donations will be available immediately, allowing the charities to continue to provide crucial support services at a time when many of their usual fundraising events have had to be cancelled.
Nick Turner, group chief executive of NFU Mutual, said: “The coronavirus pandemic is still causing tremendous disruption to country people’s lives and we are determined to provide extra support to charities that are working hard to look after the needs of rural communities.
“We are particularly pleased to be supporting organisations for young people, including the Young Farmers Clubs, which are a vital part in so many young rural people’s lives.
“We’re also delighted to be helping fund the 21 air ambulance services, which run 40 helicopters across the UK, as we know how much this lifeline is valued by farming families.”
He concluded: “NFU Mutual has been supporting our members and communities for over 110 years, and through the NFU Mutual Charitable Trust we work closely with national charities to support causes across all corners of the UK.”
Applications for November’s round of donations are now open.
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