On the radio

Jon was on BBC Radio 4's Farming Today again today. He was asked about our educational access visits under Higher Level Scheme visits and the cuts to the visit payments for new HLS applicants.

Click here to LISTEN. This link will work for 7 days from today.

Natural England

Natural England has been hugely supportive in all the environmental and stewardship work that Pilkington Farms has carried out over the last 10 years at Offley Hoo.

Their enthusiastic assitance has not just been of a fiscal nature, and we are very grateful to all those in the Cambridge office for their time, expertise and encouragement as we continue to expand and advance our schemes further.

Our Entry Level Schemes (ELS) and Higher Level Schemes (HLS) are amongst the largest privately run schemes in the country, and we are currently working on major additions and enhancements which will continue to protect the flora and fauna of Hertfordshire, whilst at the same time significantly reducing our carbon footprint and inputs. Our HLS Educational Access programme continues to develop with further plans for improved facilities: specific hand washing sinks and three permanent toilets.

In the last 3 years we have had almost 50 educational visits and we feel that these 3,500 visitors have opened our eyes almost just as much as we opened theirs. Every visit is different and tailored to each group from inner city school children and village playgroups, to agricultural professionals and other farmers who are now considering restructuring their businesses as we have done. We welcome them all and we've found we learn something new every single time.

Sheep safely grazing

Some of our Wiltshire Horn ewes in the park at Kings Walden. This permanent grazing is believed to date back as far as medieval times as a deer park.

See the new oak trees we planted as part of a large Higher Level Stewardship [HLS] scheme.

Our lambing is due to start in April and it is all done outside on an extensive system unlike BBC 2's lambing live, which is an intensive system but was brilliant television.