Appeal launched for farmers in crisis

The County Durham Community Foundation has launched an appeal to support farmers in County Durham, affected by the extended bad weather.

Lambing has been severely impacted and farmers are now behind in day-to-day tasks as they spend time caring for young lambs and sheep.

County Durham Community Foundation is matching a donation of £4,000 made by Prince Charles’ Countryside Fund to provide some initial funding for a pool of qualified local farm workers to provide support to those most in need.

Barbara Gubbins, chief executive of County Durham Community Foundation said: “We were alerted to this situation yesterday by one of our trustees and then spoke to Diane Spark at UTASS in Teesdale who fully explained the problem.

“We had no hesitation in launching this Appeal to try and support the farming community – that’s what we’re here for – to support local people in need, especially at a time of crisis.

“We can provide and help raise the money, while organisations like UTASS can directly help the farmers in a more hands on way. We really hope the public get behind this campaign as it’s so important the farmers receive help now before the situation worsens.”

To support the cause, you can visit this page; text FCCA99 with the amount to 70070.

More information can be found at the County Durham Community Foundation here.