NEW OFFICER DELIVERS FUNDING FOR YORKSHIRE’S FARMERS, FORESTERS AND GROWERS

LandSkills Yorkshire and Humber has recruited Diane Ratcliffe as a Programme Officer to help the region’s farmers, foresters and growers improve the competitiveness of their business through skills and business development. Bringing nine years of experience with funding projects, Diane’s most recent position was as a business adviser with Business Link Yorkshire, where she helped 600 learners access a wide range of training and development initiatives. Previous to that, she worked with Train to Gain and managed a UK Online Big Lottery Funded Project. Diane said: “I am really excited to be able to support Yorkshire and Humber’s farmers and growers, ensuring they get funding to develop their business.” Julie Hamilton, LandSkills Yorkshire and Humber Programme Manager said: “Diane has great background experience supporting training in our region, and we know that she will successfully support the region’s farmers and growers. LandSkills has been allocated another £1 million to support training and development over the next 12 months, so the timing could not be more perfect.” Diane concluded: “Food security is a growing world-wide concern, so I am looking forward to making sure that Yorkshire and Humber’s farmers and growers lead the nation in food production.” LandSkills Yorkshire and Humber is managed by Lantra Sector Skills Council on behalf of Yorkshire Forward, as a part of the Rural Development Programme for England, which is jointly funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and DEFRA. LandSkills provides funding to help improve skills business profitability by providing up to 70% towards training expenses. Find out more or to find out if you are eligible, visit www.lantra.co.uk/LandSkills-YH. For more information on Lantra please visit www.lantra.co.uk. Follow LandSkills on Twitter at http://twitter.com/RDPELandSkills. -ENDS- NOTES TO EDITOR: About LandSkills Yorkshire and Humber • Eligibility criteria apply, and to receive funding beneficiaries must be a farmer or grower, forestry business owner or contractor, agricultural contractor, farm or forestry employee or a young person entering farming or forestry. • You can get funded training for: • Improving work practices and resource management Technical skills • Complying with new legislation including animal health and welfare and nutrient management • Managing woodlands for fuel and economic benefit • Leadership, business and financial management. • LandSkills Yorkshire and Humber, managed by Lantra Sector Skills Council on behalf of Yorkshire Forward, is part of the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) which is funded by Defra and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development. About Lantra • Lantra is the Sector Skills Council for land-based and environmental industries, working to ensure these businesses access the training, qualifications, skills and knowledge they need. • An independent UK organisation, Lantra works with employers and the UK’s governments to address the skills and productivity needs of approximately 230,000 businesses (one in every ten UK businesses) in: agriculture; animal care; animal technology; aquaculture; environmental conservation; equine; farriery; fencing; fisheries management; floristry; game and wildlife management; land-based engineering; horticulture, landscape and sports turf; production horticulture; trees and timber and veterinary activities. • By working together with the sector, Lantra leads research on skills issues and business needs, sets national standards and develops qualifications to meet modern business needs and help businesses grow through skills. • For more information see www.lantra.co.uk.

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