East Cambridge Farmers

The East Cambridge Farmers are a group of over 20 farmers and landowners who are working in collaboration to aid Natures Recovery. The members live and work around the eastern to southeastern side of Cambridge.

The group is Facilitated by Helen Bailey of the Wildlife Trust BCN. Meetings and training events are organised by the group Facilitator throughout the year which farmers and landowners can attend. Learning together benefits biodiversity and the farm business, it also forges friendship. Funding has been awarded by the Countryside Stewardship Facilitation Fund to enable the group to achieve its aims.

The groups aims are to work in collaboration to;

• Improve water and air quality, and assess and monitor soil health to sequester carbon, improve soil health and reduce reliance on artificial nitrogen and other inputs.
• To create a functioning Nature Network
• To restore and maintain chalk grasslands, chalk streams and other local riparian habitats, as well as other habitats within the area.
• Identify the species groups within the area and look at ways to protect these species to promote resilience.
• Restore and maintain SSSIs.
• Map farm habitats and look at suitable farm habitat creation and improvement schemes to maintain and develop them further.
• Secure funding to implement change and build sustainable, integrated farm businesses.
• To engage with research science and technology to assist farming and land ownership processes.
• Work with other local Farm Cluster groups.

Since it formed in 2023 the group has visited RSPB’s Hope Farm, learned about providing for Barn Owls, and Turtle Doves, listened to talks about cover and companion crops, received soil health training, had updates on government farm stewardship schemes, visited a river restoration project on the Granta, held farm walks and talks for the public about regenerative agriculture,

Some members have developed a subgroup called Nature Grazed which is a group of farmers working together to develop a sustainable grazing programme by using native livestock as a necessary tool for management of conservation grassland and to graze arable farmland more sustainably.

East Cambridge Farmers is a farmer-led group allowing its members to decide on what they would like the group to achieve.