Ben Holgate

As Farm manager, I run everyday tasks around the farm such as shipping, production and general farm maintenance. I managed teams of up to 15 people on the farm, distributing tasks and ensuring safe works practice. I manage lorries coming in and out of the farm with deliveries, unloading and loading. I also keep the yard tidy by running out muck to the dairy down the road to use on their fields.

Running and working with a team in a high pressure environment really increased my interpersonal and time management skills making sure everything ran smoothly within the pub. I was in control of stock and managing shifts behind the bar enhancing my organisational skills.

As a Harvest worker the main task was running grain cart all summer and keeping up with the combines. Working with a team of 6 and 3,300 acres to harvest brought its challenges such as machinery breaking or the weather hindering work but using team work, communication and the willingness to carry on we were able to overcome these. Finishing harvest early allowed for me to get to grips with cultivations and groundwork's, most days just being left to the job and using resilience and quick thinking to sort out any problems in the field. Working for Velcourt drilled tractor and trailer maintenance into me, promoting confidence on what to look for when operating machinery. Loader work was a big part of the summer as well, loading grain lorries and unloading fertiliser delivery's, moving broken bails with the grab. Working for velcourt made me want to learn more about the industry and acquire new skills.