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Enterprising farmers across Northumberland have had their presentation and media skills polished to help them educate the public about rural life and work.

The innovative two-day training sessions were organised by LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming).

Northumberland farmers John and Helen Renner were awarded Rural Development Service (RDS) funding to bridge the gap between farmers and consumers, as part of the North East Farm Demonstration Programme.

As a result, they have organised two public open days at North Bellshill, a mixed farm near Belford, and called on neighbouring farmers to act as guides for visitors.

To help the farmers involved in the open day, specialist presentation skills and media training was organised.

John Renner explained: "The idea of the open days is to increase public understanding about farming practices in the fields around them and the countryside at large.

"We are trying to make the public aware of something that they don't know they are interested in.

"We involved a number of neighbouring farmers with the open days. All these guides and presenters have been specially chosen because they have a positive attitude and want to create a better understanding and value of the farming industry and to narrow the gap between consumer and producer.

"We felt it was very important that we all had some training to make sure that we get our message across to show the public what we are doing and why.

"Helen and I invited 14 farmers to the two-day sessions. On the first day, public relations experts talked to us about communicating with our audience. We discovered how to talk to groups, were given tips on to how to handle discussions and also taught how to do television, radio and newspaper interviews.

"On the second day, we had training from professionals about how to present talks, use visual aids and how to hold events or open days. The training was invaluable. To increase public knowledge about our industry we need the right skills to get our message across.''

Arable farmer David Burn from Fenham-le-Moor, Belford, was also involved in the training and acted as a guide at the open days.

He said: "The media training was very useful and I certainly would feel more confident now if I had to give an interview to a journalist. The training on presentations skills and answering questions also helped my role as a guide at the farm when I gave a talk on livestock issues, arable farming, the local wildlife and the history of the area and farming.''

Farmer David Thompson of Broxfield, a mixed farm near Alnwick, Northumberland, also attended the two-day sessions.

He said: "This type of training is essential if we are going to converse and communicate with the public and get a positive message across about farming and the countryside.''

Sue Harrison, an adviser for the Rural Development Service in the North East, said:

"Here in the North East we're lucky enough to have some forward-thinking farmers who want to create new ways of welcoming visitors into the countryside.

"The North East Farm Demonstration Programme and the media training is a great venture for us and we look forward to working with more farmers to open up more access to the countryside.

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