News
Derelict farm buildings are to be transformed into a high quality farm shop and café as part of a long-term aim to create a leisure and holiday centre in rural Northumberland.
Cavil Head Farm is a working tenanted arable farm near Acklington Village and has received over £180,000 through One North East’s Rural Development for England (RDPE) programme to transform the farm buildings.
The project will create eight jobs and support around 30 businesses by selling locally grown products such as vegetables and dairy products from other existing rural producers providing a knock-on effect for businesses in the region.
Acklington Farm Shop and Cafe is the first phase of a wider, longer term project to transform Cavil Head Farm into a leisure and holiday centre.
One North East’s RDPE Manager Adrian Sherwood, said: “The diversification of this farm will provide direct and far-reaching benefits through the creation of a new business to run a high quality farm shop and café, addressing growing demands for such a service that also attracts visitors. The shop will stock local products that not only guarantee traceability and high quality but seasonal products involve no air miles and offer good value for money to the local economy.
“RDPE seeks to encourage farm diversification in this way where the benefits are not only far-reaching for the recipient but also indirect beneficiaries - in this case local producers who will supply the farm - whose businesses will also benefit boosting the local economy.”
It is planned that the shop will open around Easter 2010, with plans to then move forward the second phase of development – transforming further disused farm buildings into holiday let homes.
The owners of Warkworth Farm bought Cavil Head Farm around 12 months ago and Tanya McPartland, is one of the partners. She said: “This RDPE funding means that we can take forward plans to transform Cavil Head Farm into a small leisure and holiday centre boasting activities such as strawberry picking.
“It is still a working arable farm specialising in wheat, oil seed rape and potatoes but there are a number of derelict pre-1950 buildings that we are looking to transform to achieve our aims and make this a successful business with knock-on effects for neighbouring businesses while also creating welcome new jobs.”
The RDPE Business and Community Assets programme is being delivered by Northumberland County Council through their Rural Projects Development Fund.
Cllr Jim Smith, executive member for regeneration, planning and housing at Northumberland County Council, said: “RDPE grant funding is being used to support rural enterprises, such as Cavil Head Farm, to become more sustainable through diversification. This expansion into areas and markets outside primary agriculture will help the Northumberland economy, local communities and other businesses.”
The Rural Development Programme for England 2007-2013 is jointly funded by Defra and the European Union, with the aim of delivering targeted support to rural businesses and communities. It is managed in North East England by One North East, Natural England and the Forestry Commission.
The RDPE investment being managed by One North East combines larger projects to help many businesses in different sectors of the rural economy - including bioenergy and land-based skills, and projects adding value to agricultural and forestry products - with smaller investments to help individual businesses to start-up, grow or diversify, and support to develop more sustainable rural communities.
RDPE Business Support is part of Solutions for Business, the Government’s package of publicly funded support products offering help to companies to start, grow and succeed. Solutions for Business makes it easier for businesses to get the advice and assistance that they need.
For further information on the full package of support, visit www.businesslink.gov.uk/northeast or Tel: 0845 600 9006. For more information on RDPE in North East England, visit: www.rdpenortheast.co.ukFor more information on RDPE, visit: http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/rurdev/index_en.htm or http://www.defra.gov.uk/rural/rdpe/index.htm
Ends.
For more information, contact Alison Laggan (press office) on 0191 229 6613, mobile 07766 424400 or email alison.laggan@onenortheast.co.uk
« Back to list