Rural Support prepares for another busy Balmoral Show
With Balmoral Show only a few weeks away, Rural Support are planning an action packed four days at the upcoming event with some fantastic opportunities for anyone visiting their stands.
Rural Support will be based at stand B33a near the cattle lawn as well as the horticultural pavilion. They will be showcasing the range of services and programmes they offer which support the resilience and sustainability of the agri sector in Northern Ireland. These include farm business support which is tailored to individual business circumstances, person centred and immediate support for the whole farm family including counselling support, as well as social wellbeing initiatives and industry training.
Across the four days, Rural Support will be holding and facilitating several events in partnership with key stakeholders including one hosted by long term supporters of the charity, ABP (B5), on Wednesday May 14 at 9.30am. The ‘Celebration Event’ provides the charity with the opportunity to showcase the programmes and services they offer the farming community across Northern Ireland in support of their farm business and personal wellbeing. Stakeholders will hear firsthand from a panel discussion of services users as they provide an insight into their experience with the charity and the positive impact it has made upon their lives.
The Thursday will continue to be a busy day for the Rural Support team as they facilitate the launch of the NI Agri Rural Health Forum’s new farmers health campaign which will focus on lung and respiratory diseases. This launch event is open to all members of the farming family and will take place at the Ulster Farmers’ Union stand. Speakers will outline their campaign which will focus on understanding risk factors and reducing exposure, and the importance of early detection. The Farm Families Health Checks team, a unique leading service in the UK for farmers jointly funded by DAERA and Public Health Agency (PHA), will be on hand for support. Farmers are encouraged to drop in at this event which starts at 9.30am.
On Thursday and Friday at their stand in the horticultural pavilion, Rural Support will be taking part in a live demonstration at 11.45am on Thursday and 2.15pm on Friday. This showcase will involve the Social Farming and Innovation team highlighting the Social Farming Support Service and the benefits for both Social Farmers and participants. The audience will gain an insight into what Social Farming is, how to get involved and the positive impact this service has made to the rural and farming community. This is an open event to all members of the public.
The team’s last event will be on the Friday at the Presidential Suite Ulster Bank Enclosure at 3pm. This event, in collaboration with Action Cancer and Bowel Cancer UK, will celebrate the success of the partnership which focused on both skin and bowel cancer within the farming industry as well as others, and the importance of early detection. This event will also pay homage to the farmers who shared their stories and have been champions for promoting health amongst their peers.
Commenting on their Balmoral Show plans, Rural Support CEO Kevin Doherty said, “This year marks our busiest year at Balmoral, and we are looking forward to speaking with our farmers, farming families and stakeholders within the industry across the four days. Rural Support are involved in several prominent events at the show including our Celebration Event which will highlight the challenges our farming families are encountering within the sector and how we as the ‘Farm Support Charity for Northern Ireland’ have helped face these challenges head on. This will be my second year at the show, and I am really looking forward to it. I hope to see you all there.”
To find out more about the range of services and programmes available at Rural Support, go to the NI Farm Support hub at www.ruralsupport.org.uk or telephone the Support Line on Freephone 0800 138 1678 available Mon-Fri 9am-9pm.