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RCF provides £35,793 to fund support for farmers impacted by drought and bluetongue

At the end of September 2026, we brought together representatives from 31 farm support groups in Hampshire for our seventh annual conference. The conference unites organisations from across the UK to network, share knowledge and resources, and discuss the key issues currently facing farming communities.
Image: representatives from 31 farm support groups gathered at the 2026 conference.

Some of the topics covered at the 2026 conference included discussions on women in farming networks, ways to engage young people in the countryside, and health support for rural communities.

This year’s conference was supported by funding from The Dulverton Trust, as part of a three-year commitment to the RCF’s longstanding work with farm support groups.

The RCF’s Farm Support Group Network was launched in 2019, in response to feedback from these groups about the need for a central coordinator.

Since then, the RCF has created and sustained a network of farm support groups from across the UK. These independent organisations are deeply rooted within the farming communities they serve and provide easily accessible support for farming families.

The RCF also provides direct funding to many of these groups within the network and the charity has stepped up its investment in these vital organisations.

So far this year, the RCF has backed 19 UK farm support groups with a total of £206,043 in funding, comprised of:

  • £125,250 in strategic funding to fourteen groups across the UK, thanks to support from the NFU Mutual Charitable Trust. This funding is going towards their core activities, which include supporting farming families by organising programmes and workshops, running helplines and support groups, and helping with the wellbeing of these communities.

 

  • £25,000 in funding for four groups, thanks to support from The Health Lottery Foundation, to continue the RCF’s ‘Checking the Pressure of Farming Life’ programme, which funds the delivery of essential healthcare services directly to farming and rural communities. Read more here.

 

  • £35,793 of funding for nine farm support groups from the RCF’s Emergency Fund to allow them to deliver targeted help to farming families dealing with the impacts of drought and bluetongue. Read more here.

 

  • £20,000 in strategic funding in Northern Ireland, to ensure Rural Support continues to reach farming families, especially in times of need and emergency. Read more here.

Beth Owen-Smith, Senior Programme Manager, The Royal Countryside Fund, said:

 “Farming families across the UK are under tremendous pressure right now to continue to produce food and protect nature in the face of skyrocketing input costs, extreme weather conditions, and a deeply worrying bluetongue outbreak. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to the problems facing these families. That’s why the farm support groups we fund are all community-led and are embedded in their farming communities, so they know what will make the biggest difference in their area.

 “We want our funding to go to where it will make the most impact, which is why we are supporting these fourteen organisations. Every day these groups are out helping local farmers look after their health and wellbeing, and find new and sustainable opportunities for their family businesses.

 “We’re incredibly grateful to the NFU Mutual Charitable Trust, The Dulverton Trust, and The Health Lottery Foundation for supporting this work and helping us invest in the future of these farming communities.”

The nineteen organisations which have received RCF funding in 2026 are:

 

Find out more about the RCF’s longstanding work with farm support groups here.

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