Prunella Scales buys latest share!

Prunella Scales who played Sybil in Fawlty Towers lent her support for the Fordhall Campaign this week (Monday). She came to Shropshire to perform an evening with Queen Victoria at the New Vic Theatre in Newcastle and kindly offered to speak to the audience after the performance about our fight to save Fordhall. In addition the lucky guests were offered a signed share certificate if they bought their share that evening!!! - we raised £750 through shares and £105 through donations so all in all a successful evening.

Then on Tuesday Prunella visited Fordhall. We took her on a guided walk of the farm and she really seemed to enjoy it. Making the most of the opportunity to raise awareness of the campaign, we invited our local Shropshire TV and Shropshire Star, who all covered the story exceptionally well.

We must pass on an enormous thank you to the New Vic Theatre in Newcastle under Lyme for allowing us to talk to the audience about our campaign, and then to the Borough Arms Hotel who provided a room to Ms. Scales at a very reasonable price to the Fordhall Community Land Initiative - we thank you all


The walk around Fordhall was I think informative and interesting for Prunella. As the one time president of the Campaign to Protect Rural England, she was particularly interested in keeping Fordhall out of developers hands.

"After growing up in the countryside I appreciate the hard work it takes to
run a farm. What you are doing here is so special and really is an asset to the
area. Farms and our English Countryside are some of our countries most treasured assets and should not be sent for development when they can be used for projects with so much value" said Prunella.

We must leave with a big THANK YOU to Prunella Scales for taking time out of her busy timetable to visit Fordhall and for all her valued support whilst she was here. We welcome her to Fordhall as a shareholder and friend and look forward to welcoming her to the farm again soon.

The campaign moves on.......

p.s. Keep your eye out for us in this months issue of Country Living Magazine. Rachel oakden has written a fantastic article that has already had a great response. Please do keep spreading the word.

Welcome to Fordhall Farm. My name is...

Current and prospective shareholders were invited to Fordhall Farm on Sunday 14th for guided walks around the Nature Trail by Charlotte, Ben and Sophie. These went fantastically and over 60 people arrived - from as far as London and Lancaster. We were really touched that people had made the effort to come and see for themselves why this farm is so special. Everyone left feeling enthused and promising to tell others about the project.

The day was smoothly overseen by some great volunteers who assisted with parking, baking and serving tea and cake in the garden. A number of board members were on hand to answer any questions and assemble the marquee in case of rain!

After the response we received we have decided to set another 2 dates asap so keep your eyes peeled on the events pages on the webiste. A number of visitors have also volunteered themselves to help out at the Family Fun Day on June 11th.

The latest total is £255,000!

Keep it coming folks - it all adds up

Happy Birthday Charlotte

Happy Birthday to Charlotte today.

Twenty-four years of running around, trying to fit in 40 hours into every day.

Well done for keeping up the energy!

From all at Fordhall x

ps. Maybe you'll get a day off next year?!

Hardgraft Takes Fordhall By Storm

Fordhall played 'house' to Mark and Dan from the Hardgraft
company on Monday night. The two comedians are walking from Bristol to Bangor without any money and nowhere to sleep. They arrived at Fordhall a night early on Sunday after being let down at the last minute. They were exhausted and worn down but joined us in the office at 1am and listened patiently to the Fordhall story.

Monday brought a day of rest for the guys without any walking, although they were soon in the office helping to catch up with our backlog and stuffing envelopes. Thanks guys - you were great.

Volunteers, Shareholders and others joined together for a stunning performance on Monday night from the pair. The demonstrated perfect comedy timing and imagination, really engaging the audience and coping well with the heavy rain on the barn roof.

We wish you both really well and are looking forward to hearing that you have completed your enterprising challenge. Keep your eyes peeled for these characters in Nottingham, Upton Cross, Sleaford and Boston. A great night out.

Other news - so far £250,000! We have almost caught up on share applications. Thank you so much for your patience and understanding. We really apologise for the delay since recent press coverage, although the response just proves there is tremendous support out there.

Also - We are doing Guided Walks around the farm on Sunday 14th May 1-4pm. Places need booking in advance and are limited. To reserve a place phone 01630 638696 or email project@fordhallfarm.com

£215,000 in the Bank... £585,000 to go..

So we are almost a quarter of the way there. The money is coming in steadily. We need to keep up this momentum.

Please do contact us if you have a box scheme, or local society who are willing to distribute leaflets on our behalf. There is limited time and we have limited resources at the office. We need your help to reach everyone interested in buying part of Fordhall forever, whether it be for themselves or grand children - they are investing in the future. Just let us know how many leaflets you want and where to send them, its that easy.

Charlotte spoke to the Shropshire Federation of the Civic Society today and they took 1000 to distribute to their members! More were then handed out to the Shropshire Organic Gardeners after a walk and talk around Fordhall. Can your group beat this?

The Hampshire group of CPRE have so far had the best response from the leaflets raising £4,000 towards the campaign.

Dont be out done - join in and see what a difference you can make.

Posters can also be downloaded from the 'How Can You Help' pages on our website

The Theatre comes to Fordhall

Another reminder to all of you at a loose end this coming Monday. We have the Hardgraft Theatre company coming to Fordhall on Monday 8th May at 7.30pm.

This comprises of two comedy actors Mark Whiteley and Dan Hoffmann-Gill. On the 1st May they have embarked upon their most adventurous project so far. They are walking from North Wales to the Lincolnshire coast performing each evening in a new venue.

To make it even tougher, they have no money, nowhere to sleep and no idea where their adventures will take them!

Join them on this amazing journey at Fordhall Farm, Market Drayton on Monday.... if they make it this far....

The evening and company is free although donations will be welcomed for Mark and Dan as they continue on their journey - I am not too sure if they know where they are going after Fordhall, so they well be looking for a venue near you?


Project Update:
We have so far raised £205,000 and have 1402 shareholders from across the country. It is building everyday and the momentum is still up from the Telegraph article over Easter.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/wine/main.jhtml?xml=/wine/2006/04/15/edforhall15.xml

We need to keep this momentum going if we are going to reach our £800,000 target by July 1st; we welcome your help. If you would like to help the campaign by putting up a poster, or by placing leaflets in your veg box scheme or community newsletter please do let us know and we can post them out to you.


This is our one and only chance to put Fordhall Farm into community ownership for the benefit of future generations. After being chemical free for over 65 years and with containing a Scheduled Norman Motte and Bailey on site, the farm has to be saved.

Bank Interest
Our business plan is now complete with the skilled help of Ron Makins from Strategia Consulting. This has already been taken to Triodos who seem very keen on the idea, and other banks are being approached. However, the more we can raise through community involvement the higher our chances of success. This is what will really make Fordhall stand out from the rest, and is what puts farmland back into your hands.

The team are coming to meet You!

Over the last week Ben, Sophie and I have been out and about meeting you and spreading the Fordhall message.

We spoke first of all to the Stafford Soil Association Group. This is a local group of organic enthusiasts who wanted to know more about the Fordhall Community Land Initiative. Ben and I described how we had taken over Fordhall back in 2004, in a very run down state, with no livestock and no money. However, what we did have was the energy and determination to make the farm a success and to make it the flourishing people place it once was. We also spoke about our late fathers Foggage outdoor grazing system and why he stopped adding chemicals to the land at Fordhall.

Fordhall has moved on so much since we first took over the tenancy. With over 50 cattle, 123 sheep and 20 pigs our new business, Fordhall Farm Ltd has grown. With everything being sold through the farm shop, we have been able to focus our energies on bringing people back to Fordhall and on creating a new charitable structure, the Fordhall Community Land Initiative.

This was an extremely successful meeting, we were able to sell more shares and more importantly to gather some willing volunteers who then joined us last weekend.

Our next stop was a talk to the Shrewsbury Rotary Club by kind invitation of Mervyn Davies from Howsons Accountants. Mervyn has helped and advised us at the farm since the very beginning. He has been a reliable source of skilled advice for both Ben and I as we have learnt the ins and outs of business through our farm shop.

Sophie and I spoke to the smartly dressed men of the Rotary last Tuesday. We spoke of the benefits of the Fordhall Community Land Initiative to the rural economy and the future of farming; we asked for their support.

Our final talk of the week was to Market Drayton Town Council. We went to ask for their written support for the Fordhall Community Land Initiative. Sophie and I spoke of the benefits to the town both locally and socially. As a draw for tourism to the area and as a resource for the community both in terms of education and culture, the council were in full favour.

They agreed by vote to write a letter of support for the Initiative and one to be sent to the current landowners. We must pass on our thanks for their support, in conjunction to the printing support already offered by North Shropshire District Council and the £20,000 grant towards land purchase offered by Shropshire County Council.

This was a hectic week and with talks in the late evenings we were all exhausted. However, each talk also left us with a new burst of energy and determination. It is the support we recieve each time we meet you that keeps this project going and which will make it the success it deserves to be.

With another 31 letters in the post this morning amounting to £5695.00 we are hitting £195,000. The each piece of support we gather whether it be financial, volunteer or simply vocal helps us to move closer to our £800,000 target. We have raised over half our money in a fourtnight. This pace and support needs to continue if we are to meet our deadline on July 1st.

60 Days to Go....

£605,000 still to raise...

Enjoying the Sunshine at Fordhall

Over 45 volunteers visited the farm over the weekend to do various jobs. From painting to chopping logs and moving bricks. The new picnic area has offically been relocated next to the pigs with a sturdy style and crafted gate. The whole weekend was buzzing with activity and enthusiasm. Volunteers were not only local supporters, enjoying the activities and access to the countryside, but they flocked from Preston, Manchester, London, Essex and beyond.
We were fed beautifully by other volunteers (Lesley and Elaine) who had slaved away to create a feast of delights. A particular congratulations goes to Ben who was commended for his supervising skills by volunteers.

It was the first weekend this year that volunteers had opted to camp. After the sparkling sunshine of Saturday the freshness of Sunday came as a shock to some. But spirits were not dampened as we all gathered around to watch the birth of a calf at 9am and another at 12 - a particular delight for those who had travelled all the way from London and were relishing the opportunity to be in the countryside.

Other news - shares are still coming in. This weekend gave us a chance to catch up and we hope to have all recent applications processed by the end of the week. We would like to apologise for the delay and thank all the volunteers who have given up their time to help us out.

And now for the update: The total amount raised so far is £190,000. We are on a roll!

Link to Telegraph Article

Fantastic news - a link to the Telegraph website has been created for ONE WEEK ONLY! Click here to read the brilliant article.

Send this link round to your friends and family. It captures the story perfectly and is wonderfully inspiring. Once again, our thanks go to Sally Williams who, its fair to say, has hit the nail on the head!

And thank you to Christoph, our volunteer who passed on the story to her.


It is also possible to purchase shares online or download an application form and post it back to us.

£145,000 Raised so far..

Keep it coming...