Events
Forthcoming Hub Events | Recent Hub Events | Year of Food & Farming Events | Other Events
Our Events Programme
Topical, relevant workshops offering understandable, practical presentations by experts and case study speakers, often followed by a good lunch! These are the hallmarks of Warwickshire Rural Hub events.
There have been more events and visits in the last 12 months than ever before and they fall into three categories: information, regulation and innovation. The latest survey responses from Members have told us that 96% feel the information provided by the Hub is both reliable and useful.
The last characteristic of our programme of events is that delegates are very reluctant to go home! The opportunity to network is a crucial component of our events and delegates certainly take the chance to do so. At evening meetings, this can lead to bleary-eyed Hub staff at 11.00 pm, but they recognise that well connected businesses are successful businesses.
Finding Information on the Internet Workshop - 9 September 2008
Back by popular demand! Following the success of last year’s workshop we have been asked to repeat this workshop for those that missed out. There are two course dates available and due to the interactive nature of this course places are limited and will be allocated on a first come first serve basis.
Course Dates: Tuesday 9th September 2008
Thursday 11th September 2008
Time: 10am – 2pm with a lunch included
Venue: Ruralnet UK, Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire
If you have a computer but are unsure how to make best use of the internet or send emails then this is the course for you.
It is rapidly becoming a necessity for you, the Hub Members to use the internet and email as part of your day to day farming or rural business.
Do you remember last year’s FMD, Bluetongue & Bird Flu outbreaks? It was then important that you were able to keep up with the latest information and developments, mainly by accessing the websites of Defra and the NFU. Those without internet access were at a disadvantage as they struggled to find up to date information.
For this reason, we are holding a simple half day workshop for those who do not know how to use the web or use it infrequently. The workshop will cover basic principles of the internet, accessing, navigating and searching the internet, bookmarking useful pages, basic principles of email, sending/checking emails.
By the end of this workshop you should obtain sufficient skills to confidently navigate the internet and send / receive emails – in fact you might be such a whiz that you can teach your family a thing or two!
The content of this course has been designed specifically for Hub members and what we feel would be of most benefit to you. The Workshop will have all the hallmarks of other Hub events, in that it will be friendly, informal and no one will be made to feel uncomfortable due to any lack of knowledge.
The majority of the course costs are being funded by the Warwickshire Rural Hub: all we require from you to be able to participate in this fantastic opportunity is a nominal fee of £12.
Contact: Carrie Robbins
Contact number: 02476 858242
Email: carrie@rase.org.uk
Food Development Workshops
The Development Kitchen at University College Birmingham has agreed to work with Hub Members in the West Midlands on a range of menu or dish development. Some suggested topics for the workshops are:
Rural Pub Workshop
Sourcing regional produce, cookery and knife skills, making sauces, preparation and cooking of meat, fish, poultry and game dishes with a traditional and authentic theme. Pastry and desserts.
Farm shop Workshop
Sausage making using regional recipes, Pork and game pie using traditional methods. Pates and terrines meat, fish and vegetable. Making soups and sauces for resale. Marinades for meat and poultry.
Bed and Breakfast Workshop
Concentrating on evening meals and desserts that can be pre-prepared for owner operated businesses.
Baking/Yeast Goods Workshop
Bread making including regional bread and pastries.
We would aim to run these workshops in the autumn and there would be a nominal fee charged.
If you are interested in any of these workshops are have a suggestion for any other type of food production workshop then please contact the Hub to discuss further. Once we have ascertained thelevel of interest then we will confirm dates & availability.
Contact: Carrie Robbins
Contact number: 02476 858242
Email: carrie@rase.org.uk
Warwickshire Rural Hub & ADAS Event - 19 November 2007
* Due to the high level of interest for this course we may repeat it in 2008. Please let me know if you would be interested in attending *
Fertiliser and Manure Management, with particular reference to the proposed NVZ changes. This was a free event for farmers and advisers looking to improve nutrient management and manure handling and storage. Attendance helped Members understand and meet the proposed new Nitrate Vulnerable Zone (NVZ) requirements.
Date & venue: 19 November 2007 at 10.15am in the Council Chamber, A.R.C, Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire
Contact: Carrie Robbins
Contact number: 024 76858 242
Email: carrie@rase.org.uk
Finding Information on the Internet Workshop - 4 December 2007
If you have a computer but are unsure how to make best use of the internet or send emails then this is the course for you. It is rapidly becoming a necessity for you to use the internet and email as part of your day to day farming or rural business.
We areholding a simple half day workshop for those who do not know how to use the web or use it infrequently. The workshop will cover basic principles of the internet, accessing, navigating and searching the internet, bookmarking useful pages, basic principles of email, sending/checking emails.
The majority of the course costs are being funded by the Warwickshire Rural HUb: all we require from you to be able to participate in this fantastic opportunity is a nominal fee of £12.
Due to the interactive nature of this course places are limited.
Contact: Carrie Robbins
Contact number: 024 7685 8242
Email: carrie@rase.org.uk
Farming Focus (Green Futures) - 12 March 2008
Many of you have attended the Green Futures workshops over the last three years where the partnership team have provided farming businesses with clear and concise interpretations of current rules and regulations. The only change is the name - in future the Green Futures Programme wil be known as Farming Focus.
Sessions held in warwickshire and the topics covered willinclude:
- Changes with Cross Compliance rules for 2008
- The revised sheep identification & tagging rules
- Update on environmental schemes
- NVZ regulations - where we are to date
- Hazardous waste & waste exemption reminders
- Animal Transport certification
- An opportunity to get questions on rules & regulations answered
Warwickshire Sessions - start time 7pm
Tuesday 26 February 2008 at Arthur Rank Centre, Stoneleigh
Wednesday 12 March 2008 at The Rde Lion Hotel, Atherstone
Other West Midlands Sessions - start time 7pm
11 February 2008 at Kilpeck Village Hall, Herefordshire
13 February 2008 at Stowe by Chartley Village Hall, Staffordshire
19 February 2008 at Festival Centre, Market Drayton
20 February 2008 at Luctonians RFC, Herefordshire
27 February 2008 at Bromyard RFC, Herfordshire/Worcestershire
4 March 2008 at Rudyard Hotel, Leek, Staffordshire
5 March 2008 at Worcestershire YFC Centre, Hawford, Worcestershire
11 March 2008 at Craven Arms Community Centre, Shropshire
Bookins for Farming Focus 2008 will be handled by Momenta.
Please telephone 0845 345 1302 to book your place now.
All sessions NRoSO and Basis regiatered.
The Farming Focus delivery team comprises of Rural Hubs West Midlands, working together with the CLA, NFU, Environment Agency, Natural England with support from Momenta.
Contact: Momenta
Contact number: 0845 345 1302
Planning - Give Yourself The Best Chance Of Success - 25 March 2008
9.30 am – 2.00 pm, Tuesday 25th March 2008
Council Chamber, Arthur Rank Centre, Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire
A bit like a marriage, applying for Planning Permission should not be entered into lightly or without thought! But it can be worth the effort. For your planning application to have the greatest chance of success, you need to arm yourself with the right tools, namely information, support from others and, on occasion, access to expert advice.
Designed specifically for farmers, landowners and rural businesses, this latest down-to-earth, practical Hub event will allay your fears of the planning process, help you find your way through the maze and provide you with the necessary information. You will also have a chance to hear from those who have done it and lived to tell the tale! The Event will show you how to mount a successful planning campaign, and you will have the opportunity to speak with a planner from your District Council, since all the Warwickshire District Councils have agreed to have someone present at the event.
Finally, find out how to take advantage of the Redundant Buildings Grant Scheme, newly introduced into Warwickshire and Staffordshire.
Forward-thinking farm and rural businesses will sooner or later find themselves engaging with the planning system, so use your Hub to gain relevant, valuable information which will help to move your business forward.
PROGRAMME (subject to change)
9.30 Registration & Coffee
10.00 Chairman’s Welcome & Introduction – John Lampitt
10.10 Understand your local Planner and Local Planning Policy
Philip Clarke, Warwick District Council
10.35 Do It Yourself Or Pay Someone To Help You?
Christopher Price, CLA
11.00 Building the Strongest Possible Planning Proposal
James Walton, Sheldon Bosley
11.30 Questions & Discussions
12.00 Lunch
12.45 Case Studies
13.15 Questions
13.30 Redundant Building Grant Scheme including Case Studies
Roy Shearing, Warwickshire County Council
14.00 Questions, Discussion & Close
To book your place please contact Carrie Robbins on 02476 858242 or email: carrie@rase.org.uk
Places are free of charge but limited and will be allocated on a first come first served basis
The event will run from 10am - 2pm with a lunch provided.
For further information or to book aplace please conatct Carrie at the Hub office.
Contact: Carrie Robbins
Contact number: 02476 858242
Email: carrie@rase.org.uk
Website: www.ruralhub.org.uk
Certificate of Competence for Animal Transport - 21 May 2008
From 30 April 2008, under the EU Welfare of Animals Order, anyone involved in the commercial transport of farm livestock and horses for economic return on short journeys over 40 miles (65km) and under 8 hours will be legally required to hold a Certificate of Competence (Short Journey).
Warwickshire Rural Hub in conjunction with Mid-Warwickshire Training Group can offer Hub members the opportunity to sit a written paper-based test resulting in your gaining a Certificate of Competence (Short Journey).
The Lantra Awards Certificate of Competence has two modules that cover the following species:
Module 1
• Cattle
• Sheep
• Horses
• Pigs
• Goats
Module 2
• Birds
The test for each module will cost £35.25 and will be held at Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire on 21 May 2008
Due to the administration procedure the tests have to be booked and paid for inadvance.
For further information or to book a place please contact:
Jill Salt, Mid-Warwickshire Training Group
Telephone: 01926 495024 or email: mwtg@supanet.com
If transporting animals over 65km and for more than eight hours, you will require a Long Journey certificate of competence. Lantra Awards will be able to advise on the test requirements and availability. Please contact Lantra Awards on
02476 419703 or info@lantra-awards.co.uk
Contact: Jill Salt
Contact number: 01926 495024
Email: mwtg@supanet.com
Insulation: The Easiest Way To Save Money - 4 June 2008
ENERGY BILLS GOING THROUGH THE ROOF?
INSULATION: THE EASIEST WAY TO SAVE MONEY
Save money on energy bills
Make more of your buildings
Comply with new building regulations
Prepare for the installation of new energy technologies.
The cost of oil is rising inexorably and energy bills are going the same way. You may not have much choice in what energy you buy or who you buy it from but you do have a means of reducing your heating (and cooling) bills. One of the easiest ways to save money on your energy bills is to insulate your buildings.
Converting old buildings or constructing from new, there are now tighter building regulations that control the insulation of properties.
Or you may be considering installing alternative technologies - the latest wood pellet burners, combined heat and power plant, or ground- or air-source heat pumps; but have you checked the insulation of your buildings to ensure you are not throwing good money after bad?
So how do you find out what you can do for your buildings before spending more money on energy than you need?
In response to members’ demand Warwickshire Rural Hub Resource Efficiency Club has invited experts on all forms of insulation to give you the low down on what’s right for your building – be it a potato store or a luxury holiday let; whether it needs to be internal or external, in the roof, the floor or the walls.
All Hub members are invited to come along on Wednesday 4 June from 10am til 2pm (with a lunch included) to the Arthur Rank Centre, Stoneleigh to learn how heat loss (or gain) can be avoided or controlled and the best way to insulate your buildings and save money. There will be speakers and exhibitions from manufacturers and installers – so you can pick the brains of those who know what they are talking about.
DON’T THROW GOOD MONEY AFTER BAD.
REDUCE CARBON EMISSIONS, HEAT LOSS, CONDENSATION, DAMP AND ENERGY BILLS. YOU KNOW IT MAKES SENSE.
If you would like to attend this FREE event please email Carrie Robbins at carrie@rase.org.uk places are limited so it is on a first come first serve basis.
Contact: Carrie Robbins
Contact number: 02476 858242
Email: carrie@rase.org.uk
Biomass Event - "Chips With Everything!" - 18 June 2008
Chips with Everything!
No, not those sort of chips – wood chips!
Trying to reduce your energy bills?
Thinking seriously about installing a wood chip or wood pellet boiler?
Flummoxed about where to go for reliable advice and equipment?
Then come along to “Chips with Everything”, the Warwickshire Rural Hub’s Biomass Information Mini-Event. “Chips with Everything” will be held on Wednesday, 18th June 2008 in and around the Arthur Rank Centre at Stoneleigh Park.
“Chips with Everything” is a new type of event for the Hub. Twice during the day, at approximately 10.00 am and 2.00 pm, Professor Dave Pink from Warwick HRI at Wellesbourne will give a talk on the reasons why you should be considering the installation of a biomass boiler.
We will then have with us at least nine companies and organisations who can provide you with information, consultancy, installation assistance, boilers or wood chip/pellets.
As well as having the opportunity to speak to staff from these companies/organisations, you may also have the chance to look at boilers, wood harvesting equipment and woodchip. Some are planning to display their wares outside under the canopy of the Arthur Rank Centre (weather permitting).
In this way, you can choose whether you want to come along for the morning or for the afternoon. All we ask, for catering purposes, is that you let us know that you’re intending to visit.
Biomass boilers are beginning to be installed in Warwickshire now – it’s taken a while, but momentum is growing. The technology is still relatively new in the UK though, and “Chips with Everything” will give you the chance to talk to those who have been working with this technology for a while – they can potentially help you bring your ideas to fruition. Come along to this latest FREE Warwickshire Rural Hub event on 18th June and find out whether a biomass boiler really makes sense for you, your home and your business.
Places are limited. To book a place at this FREE event please email Carrie Robbins at carrie@rase.org.uk
Contact: Carrie Robbins
Contact number: 02476 858242
Email: carrie@rase.org.uk
HEFF Website for Young People
As partof the Year of Food and Farming Heart of England Fine Foods has launched a new website for young people who areinterested in learning more about Food and Drink produced in the West Midlands region.
The site contains information on health, environment, carers and farming. The site includes easy to read facts, recipes, a farmers bllog, carreers and farming interviews, quizzes and puzzles.
Visit the site at www.heff.co.uk/youngatheff
Website: www.heff.co.uk/youngatheff
Farming Futures On-Farm Workshop - 24 September 2008
The Farming Futures project is organising a series of FREE regional workshops on farming and climate change issues. Details are also available on http://www.farmingfutures.org.uk/x9.xml, or from the Farming Futures project team at Forum for the Future - Katie Zabel (k.zabel@forumforthefuture.org.uk) and Maya Herbolzheimer (m.herbolzheimer@forumforthefuture.org.uk).
Farming Futures is a Defra-funded communications project involving the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), the Country Land & Business Association (CLA), the Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC), and the Agriculture and Horticulture Research Forum (AHRF). It provides advice and information to farmers about the risks, responsibilities and opportunities that climate change presents. A series of fact sheets and case studies on key climate change issues is also available at www.farmingfutures.org.uk.
24 September – West Midlands event at Walford Agricultural College, Shropshire
Focus on: renewable energy
Organised with: NFU – Sarah Faulkner
Website: www.farmingfutures.org.uk
Farming Futures On-Farm Workshops - 5 November 2008
The Farming Futures project is organising a series of FREE regional workshops on farming and climate change issues. Details are also available on http://www.farmingfutures.org.uk/x9.xml, or from the Farming Futures project team at Forum for the Future - Katie Zabel (k.zabel@forumforthefuture.org.uk) and Maya Herbolzheimer (m.herbolzheimer@forumforthefuture.org.uk).
Farming Futures is a Defra-funded communications project involving the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), the Country Land & Business Association (CLA), the Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC), and the Agriculture and Horticulture Research Forum (AHRF). It provides advice and information to farmers about the risks, responsibilities and opportunities that climate change presents. A series of fact sheets and case studies on key climate change issues is also available at www.farmingfutures.org.uk.
5 November - East Midlands event at Richard Harvey’s farm, Rutland, Leicestershire
Focus on: biomass
Organised with: NFU – Paul Tame
Website: www.farmingfutures.org.uk
Organising school visits to farms - Ryton Organic Gardens - 17 November 2008
A talk by Kate Shaw, Food for Life Partnership East Midlands Co-ordinator for the Soil Association.
The talk will be preceeded by a short informal Mercia Organic producers AGM. Any suggestions for talks/walks welcome. They also welcome anyone who would like to be part of their organising committee.
Contact: Phil Sumption
Contact number: 024 7630 8200
Email: psumption@hdra.org.uk
Website: www.gardenorganic.org.uk
Made in Shropshire - Monthly Markets
Regular Monthly Markets in the Heart of Shrewsbury on the 2nd Saturday of the month.
Out of County guests are welcome.
Open to individuals and small businesses who design and produce their own goods for sale (food and crafts).
Applications considered two weeks before each market.
Cost £45 (including electricity).
Contact: Victoria Jones, Shropshire Rural Hub
Contact number: 01939 262106
Email: shropshireruralhub@wnsc.ac.uk
Website: www.madeinshropshire.co.uk