Jill Thorp - Tackling long-standing issue is 'heart-breaking but essential'

The long awaited works have now begun on the house and our yard is filled with skips and scaffolding. The weather has already caused a delay with strong winds deeming any work on the scaffolding unsafe. There are many hard hat and hi-viz wearing people dashing around the yard, clipboard in hand, health and safety etched into their furrowed brows. I’ve already lost count of the number of times I’ve heard the words

“Gosh it’s cold up here” and not for the first time, dearly wish they’d arrived at the start of summer, not winter. Amongst the strange faces milling about in are the project managers and then the people that manage them and then those that manage some but only for specific jobs and so forth. Then there are the ones that have to sign off on the jobs and give the green light but only of course if the various project managers and hard hat wearers agree. If they don’t, it’s back to the drawing board. Meanwhile the lads that would like to just crack on, sip steaming cups of tea in the heated welfare cabin waiting for permission to swing a bat. It’s all quite foreign to us, we tend to just get on and our health and safety extends about as far as “watch your back” and “keep a sharp eye on that cow, she’s a bit keen”. The two giant skips outside our kitchen window are already full, sadly with our entire garden. The heavily scented Lilac tree, beautiful climbing rose and clematis with it’s huge showy plum coloured flowers all ripped out and wilting in the skip. It’s heart-breaking to see, but sadly it’s absolutely essential and will be our only solution to the endless damp issues at the front of the house.

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Following another complaint, APHA, the government body that deals with animal welfare and safe guarding have now decided to do a full farm inspection which will no doubt come at the same time as our cattle being tested for Bovine tb. It’s frustrating and demoralising for us to think that someone deems us unfit to look after our stock and perhaps even uncaring. The hours of constant care and attention, in all weathers every single day of the year clearly go unnoticed by this individual. The blood, sweat and tears we pour into this farm with the welfare of our animals being first and foremost in our minds; for someone to pass judgement on us after a fleeting glimpse of some of our sheep is poor at best. I would have thought that ministry vets would have their hands full with tb, Blue tongue and Avian flu running rampant through the country. At times it feels like so many of our problems are because of that cursed motorway; aside from the constant noise and intrusion, there is the endless congestion of the small surrounding lanes, leaving us at times locked in and unable to either access the farm or leave. Our whole livelihood and belongings are there for all to see, leaving us vulnerable to theft, which of course we are no strangers to. It’s a difficult situation for us, that in all honesty gets no easier with time.

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