Ruth Gasson

Farmer participation in voluntary land diversion schemes: Some predictions from a survey

Abstract National and European agricultural policy schemes are now coming forward which rely on land diversion to achieve a variety of supply control, social and environmental policy goals. Operating on a voluntary basis, these will depend for their success on sufficient numbers of farmers agreeing to enrol land in sufficient quantities and in the right localities. Participation is thus a crucial variable in any assessment of land diversion policies. This paper draws on the results of a farm survey to make some predictions about the level and pattern of uptake of a range of such schemes, identifying the characteristics of resistors and adopters and exploring the motives of participants. It is concluded that land diversion will have most appeal to well-placed farmers who are able to justify the diversion of land out of an agricultural use in terms of forestry and conservation plans which have already been laid. The implication is that voluntary schemes may not be especially powerful instruments for bringing about land use changes on the large number of holdings in the U.K. which presently lack any history of conservation or forestry management, at least not without accompanying reductions in the level of market support for agriculture.

Gender relations and farm household pluriactivity

Abstract The division of labour in farm households continues to be structured by gender, affecting not only task allocation but also the exercise of control over the farm business. Rural sociologists have speculated that pluriactivity will challenge existing gender roles and relationships. One argument is that pluriactivity on the part of either spouse will increase the womans power, due to her independent earnings if she is pluriactive or to her greater involvement in running the farm if her husband takes another job. A conflicting view is that women are adding to their workload in order to subsidize the family farm without enjoying a commensurate increase in power. Empirical evidence is sparse and equivocal. Data from the East and Mid-Devon study area of the Arkleton Trust research project on farm household pluriactivity were used to test these predictions systematically. Information was available on the activities of 272 principal male farmers and 245 wives from a random sample of 300 farm households. Wives are typically less involved than their husbands in farm tasks and exercise less power over major farm business decisions or day-to-day management. In this sample 32% of wives and slightly fewer husbands have other gainful employment on or off the farm. Where the husband only has another job there is little evidence of any increase in the wifes power in the farm business, though she might work longer hours on the farm. If the wife only works away she may be less involved in decision-making but where both spouses have other jobs, the wife is typically consulted much more. Further analysis suggests it is not pluriactivity per se which affects gender roles and power relationships in farm households but associated differences in backgrounds of farm husbands and wives. More egalitarian sharing of responsibility reflects less traditional attitudes brought by couples from non-farming origins.

Educational Qualifications of UK Farmers: A Review.

Abstract Better-educated farmers are known to make greater use of information, advice and training, to participate more in government schemes and to be more proactive in adjusting to change and planning for the future of the business. Such traits are in greater demand as the pace of change accelerates. Yet there is no single authoritative source of information on the educational attainment levels of UK farmers and no benchmark against which to monitor trends. This literature review attempts to integrate evidence from all available sources. The consensus emerging from a number of recent studies seems to be that at least one-third and possibly half of all UK farmers today have pursued courses of further or higher education and obtained qualifications, largely in agriculture or related subjects. About 4–6% have degrees, a similar number have HNDs and between a quarter and a third have FE qualifications from full-time or part-time study. The proportion qualified has risen steeply since the Second World War but still compares unfavourably with managers of other small businesses. Higher levels of educational attainment are associated with large farms and the arable east, with employers, female or pluriactive farmers and with farm managers. Although these relationships tend to be dismissed as ‘age effects’ or ‘size effects’, it is suggested that education may be exerting an independent influence on farmer behaviour.

Pilgrimage and tourism: cathedral visiting in contemporary England.

Abstract This paper examines the role of cathedral visiting in contemporary England. It highlights the importance of cathedrals to the tourism economy and also considers the issue of the commercialisation of heritage within cathedrals and the difficulties posed for cathedral authorities in contrasting perceptions of visitors as tourists and pilgrims. The issue of pilgrimage is examined through the results of a survey of the experiences and attitudes of eight hundred visitors to four English cathedrals. It is suggested that the tension between tourism and pilgrimage is not as great as might be expected and that experience of visiting a cathedral can engender a sense of pilgrimage in the tourist

Career opportunities for women in British agriculture

Abstract In this age of feminine consciousness, it is appropriate to ask what opportunities there are for women in agriculture, an industry traditionally dominated by men. This paper analyses careers of women leaving agricultural colleges in Britain during the 1970s. Comparing first appointments of women with those of men with the same qualifications, it appears that some doors are virtually closed to women. Fewer women than men enter practical farming and very few obtain management posts. More women than men find employment with large organisations servicing agriculture, though typically not in the most prestigious positions. Overall, fewer women than men obtain posts relevant to their agricultural training. Possible explanations include structural change in the industry, attitudes of employers, socialisation of women into feminine roles, sex differences in ability and influence of marriage and the family.