Hadlow College's students are the first to graduate from the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) funded Fresh Start Academy Programme, which aims to encourage new recruits into the farming industry.
Hadlow College was the second Fresh Start Academy to open in the UK, and has proven to be a blueprint for the nearly 20 academies that have opened since.
Hadlow academy's 15 graduates have undertaken training sessions in writing business plans, preparing cash flows, marketing produce, tax planning and asset management. They have also made visits to progressive farm businesses and met top industry professionals as part of the course.
The Fresh Start Initiative is supported by both the National Farmers' Union and the National Farmers Federation of Young Farmers, and aims to secure a sustainable future for farming in England. It is hoped that the initiation will eventually reach every region in the country.
Fresh Start Academy co-ordinator Douglas Jackson said at the award ceremony: “The Kent academy at Hadlow is the first academy in the UK to graduate, which is a fantastic achievement in itself and, in my opinion a testament to the work and support of the Hadlow staff and in particular [college director] Mark Lumsden-Taylor.
“When we first approached Hadlow about hosting an academy it was an unproven concept; without their support this project may not have developed in the way it has. In a real example of Hadlow's forward thinking approach to the rural based industries, it fully embraced the concept and recognised the benefit it can offer the UK agriculture and horticulture industries.”
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