1997: AN EVENTFUL YEAR FOR BERROW ESTATE
In the early part of this century, farming used to be a simple occupation relying on nothing more than horses, wains and people. How many of us conjure up the idyllic picture below to symbolise an impression of unchanged and peaceful country life?
Events since the war have changed farming beyond recognition. Our own local barometer, the Berrow Estate, is a constant reminder to us of such change but not even the most forward looking of our villagers would have forecast the cataclysmic changes of 1997.
The history of the Estate, and the ever-increasing rate of change, should have prepared us all.
As 1997 opened, tenants and villagers were wondering how recently-arrived young city business man, Simon Pemberton, would introduce new business methods to make more money while preserving the heritage in peasant farming families who had toiled the land for generations.
The first shock was the conversion of unoccupied farm buildings into business units. These were reluctantly accepted by our parishioners with some, Pat and her dairy, for example, taking the opportunity to expand their businesses
As events turned out,this was a prelude to more far-reaching changes. A fire at Grange Farm provided Simon Pemberton with the excuse to oust the Grundys and repossess the land. A Tribunal was set up to review the repossession case with Graham Ryder - Land Agent for Rodway and Watson - representing the Berrow Estate, and James Miller - Land Agent for the Tenant Farmers Association - representing the Grundys. Although finding it difficult to find character witnesses, the Grundys bought a herd of Jersey cows and installed temporary milking equipment to restore the farm’s income. This decision and the late decision by Shula Hebden to act as a character witness obviously acted in their favour as the Tribunal found that Simon Pemberton had no case for repossession. A memorable night at the Bull followed as the Grundys celebrated the decision.
No sooner had this earth-shattering event subsided when Simon Pemberton was found in court on a charge of assaulting Debbie Aldridge. Although only receiving a fine and suspended sentence, this event seemed to be sufficient to make Simon Pemberton retreat to the Middle East to pursue other business opportunities. The outcome was the sale of the Berrow Estate.
The existing tenants started to express interest in their land but unknown to them Brian Aldridge had started discussions with an investment institution who were keen to add farmland to their portfolios. With a useful block of woodland plus a range of business units, the estate offered considerable scope for a range of rurally-based farming and leisure enterprises.
Despite reassurances from Graham Ryder that the land was still available, the tenants continued to agonise over their offers and worried about how to raise the funding, only to wake up one morning to find that the land had been sold to the Aldridge-led consortium.
Bitter recriminations followed with family set against family as the truth emerged. It has been hard to swallow for some of our villagers that not only has the opportunity to be landowners gone but that one of their own family will be responsible for managing their interests. 1998 promises to be a turbulent year.
Agricultural Story Editor: Dave Harding