Countryfile presenter Matt Baker documents his return to the family farm and the struggle for its survival.

Matt, who also produces and directs the four-part documentary, said it was “without doubt the most personal TV show I’ve ever made”.

Alongside the 42-year-old’s TV career, he has continued to play an active role in running the family organic sheep farm.

But last summer he received a call saying his mother, Janice, had been injured as she prepared to shear the sheep.

The 65-year-old had been knocked down by the flock of pedigree Hampshire Down sheep and it was this which triggered the decision to move back up north.

The series not only follows the move but the need to make “crucial” changes to his parent’s farm so it can remain a sustainable business. Returning to the farm with his family, Matt was faced with the challenge of keeping the remote farm running and helping his mum overcome injuries from her accident.

During the four episodes, viewers will see the three generations of the Baker family around the farmhouse table as they make big decisions for the future of the farm which includes looking at the breeds of livestock. Matt and Nicola’s children, Luke and Molly, will be seen helping decide which breeds will be best for the farm’s new future.

The family will then be filmed as they travel around the UK to restock with the breeds more suited to a sustainable future for the business.

Viewers will also get to know the menagerie of animals that inhabit the farm. These range from miniature donkeys who live in a bespoke tiny stable yard and the litter of Cairn Terrier pups who arrive midway through the series.

It will also be an opportunity for the presenter to champion local traditional craft and heritage skills along the way. He will be calling on the services of local experts and friends to help the family out and even finds the time to save his dad, Mike’s 1946 Dodge car that has been left in a field for 20 years.

The series marks the presenter’s producing and directorial debut with the production company Big Circus Media where he is also creative director, which he said, made it even more personal.

Gareth Collett, executive producer for the company who admitted he had “loved” getting to know the miniature donkeys during filming, said: “Saving his family farm is going to be a long project for Matt but he’s got some great plans to give the land he grew up on a brilliant future.”

Sean Doyle, from Channel 4, which will be broadcasting the show described it as “warm and funny”.

“It is an often emotional look at what it takes for a close-knit family, ably assisted by an eclectic mix of animals, to pull together in the face of adversity,” he said.

Our Farm in the Dales will air on March 31 on More4 at 9pm.