From the publishers of Home Farmer magazine comes a new book called “Viable Self-Sufficiency – The Ultimate Guide to Living off the Land” which has been written by committed long-time smallholders, Tim and Dot Tyne.

This is the most comprehensive guide to living off the land since John Seymour’s seminal book “The Complete Book of Self-Sufficiency” which was published back in 1976.

Viable Self-Sufficiency cover image

This is not from a massive publishing house and this is not just another mass produced book to be sold as cheap as chips via discount outlets or bookshop chains. It is a high quality, full colour, thoroughly researched, substantial book which will have a relatively short initial print run of just 4000 copies.

It is also being printed in the UK, by one of the very last remaining printers of hardback, colour books left in this country. Why publish a book which advocates sustainability and then have it printed half way around the globe and possibly sacrifice another part of our own UK printing industry in the process?

You can help them to make this a reality via their KickStarter project and depending on the amount you are willing to donate you can get some fantastic rewards. The more you donate the better the reward from signed copies of the book to Home Farmer magazine subscriptions and much more.

At the time of writing this the KickStarter fundraising project is already 60% of the way but that still leaves 40% to go and every little helps so please take a look!

I’ve not seen the full movie but if the trailers are anything to go then the slightly shorter version of Addicted to Sheep on BBC Four tonight (Mon 8 Feb) at 9pm should be a really good watch. Not least because the subject matter and locations are so close to home!

A particularly timely programme given the time of year but perhaps a good introduction to the Vets pre-lambing talk on Thurs 18 in Nenthead and it’s not too late to sign up for that. See the event page for more details.

Details have just been added to the calendar for a new workshop/training event. This is a Woodland Management Training course which takes place in March and places are limited so if interested get in touch with the organiser as soon as possible.

Full details can be found on the Woodland Management Training event page or from this course flyer (PDF format, 450kB).

A television production company in London (Pi Productions) are looking for people who are planning to make a major relocation in order to change their lifestyle and run a business.

Ideally this would be a lifestyle or rural business, for example, a smallholding, a B&B or holiday let cottages, a country pub, or even a caravan park or cattery. An example story could feature a city based couple giving up their jobs, selling their house and moving to the countryside to run a farm. Perhaps they are tired of the rat race and want to move to the country for a better quality of life for their family.

They are particularly interested in hearing from people who are either about to relocate or are in the process of relocating, and would love to hear from aspiring smallholders. They are looking to hear from people over the next week or two so if interested contact Talitha Smith on 0203 761 4522.

There will be 2 NPS members attending the Defra Smallholders focus group next month so we would like to gather any relevant comments from other members as well. These will be collated and those attending can ensure as many of them as possible are raised during the discussions.

The following initial concerns were noted during the last committee meeting:

• Many smallholders are unable to claim the Single Farm Payment as they have less than the 5ha minimum. This would be valuable extra income and is likely to be reinvested in the land.
• Lack of capital grants payments for environmental improvements; the only grants available are via Stewardship schemes which require complicated agreements and generally apply to larger farms only. Would suggest a simple capital grants/environmental management scheme be available for smallholders.
• Ear tags frequently get torn off both sheep and cattle leading to flystrike etc. We need a better system of livestock ID to avoid animal welfare issues.
• A technical advice service of some sort would be beneficial as many smallholders are relatively new to farming.
• Flood management measures to help alleviate flood risk downstream may well find interest amongst smallholders eg creation of woodland buffers, water features.
• Assistance with training. We have numerous ideas for training in the North Pennines but have quickly realised this comes at a cost. Scottish smallholders appear to have access to government funding and expertise for training sessions and that could be a good model for DEFRA to follow.

If anyone has a particular topic or concern they would like to see raised then please send full details through to Walter Walker ( walter.walker337@icloud.com )

Do you keep livestock? Would you like to share your views? Defra is interested in understanding the issues for smallholders and hobby farmers keeping animals.

They are organising focus groups, run by independent academics, and are looking for smallholders to be part of groups of 6-9 people. The discussions in the groups will be summarised to help Defra provide better advice and support to smallholders and hobby farmers.

The first focus group will be held in York on Weds 10th February between 12:00 and 2.30 with lunch provided and reasonable travel expenses will be paid. They would like to have a broad range of views so if you would like to be part of the group please contact Merewyn.loder@defra.gsi.gov.uk by January 22nd.

If you can’t attend that time or place but would like to be involved then let them know as they will be organising other groups across the country.

Details have been finalised for the first couple of member events for 2016 so I have included a summary below. Full information for each event including contact details for reserving a place can be found on the specific calendar entry:

Vets Lambing talk – Thurs 18 Feb (evening)

Introduction to the RBST – Weds 16 Mar (evening)

Please note that these events are FREE to NPS members so if you haven’t joined the group yet then simply complete and return the official NPS membership form in advance.

For planning purposes we always need to know the number of people that will be attending these events so please use the contact email shown against each event to reserve your place.

For some time now the North Pennines Smallholders group has provided a free message board/forum on this website as well as a public Facebook page and also a closed Facebook group. After considering the level of active use for each of these over the past year, it makes sense to remove the website forum in favour of the Facebook alternatives.

While making these changes it seemed sensible to explain in more detail the various options for connecting with NPS members and others on social media.

It should also be remembered that if any NPS members have something they want published here on the website then it can always be sent via email to webmaster@northpenninessmallholders.co.uk

Facebook PAGE vs Facebook GROUP

Both the Facebook page and the group provide a useful communication tool for NPS and the members. Hopefully the following explanation will clarify the intention and purpose for each of them.

The North Pennines Smallholders group on Facebook is configured as a closed group so that users must be approved first. This is simply to prevent unwanted spam posts and ensure that the content is relevant for members. In addition the group allows all members to connect with each other, share updates, photos and documents as needed. Anyone with a Facebook account can apply to join the NPS group and (for the moment) the Facebook group is completely separate from official paid NPS membership which uses the membership forms provided.

As an alternative, the North Pennines Smallholders page on Facebook is publicly visible and can be found by anyone when searching on Facebook for related subjects or keywords. If you have a Facebook account then please LIKE this page and you will then get to see all updates as part of your regular News Feed. This is a great way for the NPS as a whole to connect with others on Facebook and for individual members to connect with the wider public.

Twitter account

For those who don’t want to use Facebook, there is also a Twitter account for the North Pennines Smallholders that you can follow. This provides an alternative means of connecting with both existing and potential members as well as the general public.

Comments or Suggestions?

If you have any comments or suggestions relating to the forum and social media then please use the comments facility at the bottom of this page.

It is now possible to download the official North Pennines Smallholders membership application form via this link: NPS – membership form

Everyone in the North Pennines (and beyond) with an interest in smallholding of any form is welcome to join the group. Simply return a completed form and arrange for payment of the annual fee.

Ideally all fees should be paid via standing order or direct bank transfer (BACS) as this helps to reduce the overheads for the group but paying by cheque is also possible. Any cash payments should be handed over in person and should not be posted for obvious security reasons.

For reference, the constitution document is also available to download via this link: NPS – constitution