Young farmer Sally grows agriculture skills at Myerscough College

Sally Burton (Photo: Farmers Guardian)

17-year-old Sally Burton is currently on Myerscough’s Level 3 Extended Diploma study programme in Agriculture, and combines study with working on the family farm in Wigan. The farm covers around 80 hectares (200 acres) based over two farms, and they also milk ninety cows.

Sally, who is aiming to progress onto a degree programme when she finishes her further education course, says: ‘’I have lived on the family farm since I was born, and my interest (in agriculture) truly developed when I was around 13 years old. This was a time when I needed some extra money so working on the farm seemed the easiest option.

‘’Little did I know it would be hard work and many hours of my time, but from then my love for the farming industry grew. I now work several days a week on the family farm alongside my course at Myerscough College. On the farm I usually milk the cows alongside other jobs such as feeding calves and bedding up.’’

Of her studies, Sally says: ‘’Coming into farming at a young age I have developed workmanship skills as well as life skills.

‘’I recently started a trial for my investigative project, comparing calves being fed on waste milk with calves being fed on milk replacer. I am hoping to see if there is any beneficial gain on weight and health for the calves at the end of my project.

‘’Earlier in the academic year I attended the annual NFU conference on tenant farming at Macdonald Kilhey Court, Wigan. The conference enhanced my knowledge as well as opening my eyes to what could possibly be my future as a tenant and how working hard can get you where you want to be.

‘’With education under my belt, I am hopeful that as a young farmer I will be able to earn a living and do what we love the most. I am hoping in the future to either help run the family farm or become a farm consultant as I could not imagine life any other way.’’

As well as working on the family farm and studying with Myerscough College, Sally is also an active member of the Chorley Young Farmers. She says: ‘’I have recently finished my year as social secretary. A huge part of the role was to make sure there was a meeting each week and to try and gain some new members with our new member’s evenings.

‘’I’ve also competed in various competitions and was named Junior Member of the Year, as voted by the other members of the club. I enjoy all the social aspects of Young Farmers as there are plenty of nights out and social events throughout the year.’’

For more details on the range of agriculture study programmes available at Myerscough College, click here: http://www.myerscough.ac.uk/courses/agriculture/