The Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association (RNAA) is preparing to launch a new fund aiming to boost the aspirations of farming careers.
The RNAA Opportunities Fund will offer grants and bursaries to support young people and those trying to get ahead in the agricultural industry.
Managing director Mark Nicholas said although the RNAA has made professional development grants in the past, the funding has been dependent on the association's financial performance during the year.
The new initiative aims to increase the long-term availability of funds by encouraging donations and fundraising from RNAA members as well as other trusts and donors.
Mr Nicholas said: "We want to be in a position where we are raising money so we can make grants and bursaries to enable young people to get a vital piece of education they need, or professional development.
"There are some obvious examples. At the top end of the scale you have got funding a Nuffield scholarship, which is really important, or it could be enabling people from Norfolk to go to the Oxford Farming Conference, for example, where the cost of doing that is a barrier.
"We are also enabling some more practical help where there may be people either in the industry or trying to get into the industry who need a particular qualification, and there is a cost to gaining it.
"It is about raising aspirations, and enabling people to go out and do the things they really want to do. It is about making Norfolk's farmers great."
The RNAA Opportunities Fund will be launched on November 26 at the Royal Norfolk Show Charity Ball.
The association is also running a competition offering two free tickets to the 2023 Oxford Farming Conference on January 4-6.
The Norfolk Scholar Competition is open to people aged 18-35 who are involved in agriculture and live, work or study in the county.
Applicants will need to answer questions on their career ambitions, what they think are agriculture's most important challenges, and how attending the conference will develop their working aspirations.
The deadline is October 25, with interviews taking place at the Norfolk Showground the first week of November.
The winners will receive a three-day ticket to the conference including paid travel and hotel expenses, and will be expected to report back on their experience.
For full application details see rnaa.org.uk/norfolk-scholar-competition.
Case study 1: Emily Norton
One previous recipient of RNAA funding is former Norfolk dairy farmer Emily Norton, now head of rural research at Savills UK, who secured sponsorship for her Nuffield scholarship.
"The support that the RNAA offered me was transformational," she said.
"My Nuffield scholarship got me out of my comfort zone and gave me the ability to travel the world meeting inspiring people and consolidating a lot of the things I had been thinking about to do with farming and how policy supports us as an industry.
"It was this travel that led me directly to my role at Savills through a chance meeting over a Nuffield lunch in London, and then into the Oxford Farming Conference role through a recommendation from a Nuffield contact.
"I am truly grateful to the RNAA for the leg up their support gave me, and I am thrilled to hear that this support will be available to others through the Opportunities Fund."
Case study 2: Oscar Smith
Another previous beneficiary of RNAA funding is Oscar Smith, a former Easton College student who won a scholarship to attend the Oxford Farming Conference in 2016.
"The Norfolk Scholar Bursary helped fund a trip to the Oxford Farming Conference (OFC) that would open anyone's eyes to new levels in the agricultural industry," he said.
"When awarded, I had been in the industry for five years, coming from a non-agricultural background.
"Attending OFC introduced me to the value and excitement of networking. It provided space to meet people of a similar career position and enabled access to those at the top of the industry.
"One experience involved finishing a conversation with a 300-acre arable farmer before turning round to shake the hand of the top beef buyer for Tesco.
"My scholarship trip to OFC revealed the limitless opportunity within our sector and that has been a massively positive driving force in my career to date."
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