Starting at 10:30am, with tea and coffee available from 10am, the conference will be an opportunity to bring women together to share ideas and ultimately provide that first step into the work of the union.
The two keynote speakers are NFU President, Minette Batters, who also runs a tenanted family farm in Wiltshire and Hannah Jackson, the Red Shepherdess [and star of Channel 4’s SAS: Who Dares Wins], who farms in Cumbria. Other speakers on the day include the Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs, Lesley Griffiths AM; Meinir Howells, S4C presenter; and former BBC reporter Rebecca Hayes, now of Sgript, as well as various NFU Cymru staff and officeholders.
Clare Morgan, NFU Cymru Pembrokeshire County Chair and poultry farmer, who will also be opening the conference, said: “There are some great female farmers doing a fantastic job on farms right across Wales; many are running successful businesses in their own right, including on-farm diversification projects. The aim of this conference is to bring women involved with farming businesses, together to share knowledge, ideas and most of all to raise the profile of women who can become more involved with the union and the industry as a whole.”
Stella Owen, NFU Cymru County Adviser said: “NFU Cymru is fortunate to have a number of females representing the industry on behalf of the union, whether that be as a grass roots member, a board member, an officeholder, or part of the NFU Cymru staff. However it would be great to see more getting involved and I look forward to seeing many new faces at this conference.”
The She Who Dares…Farms conference is open to all, however spaces are limited. Please register your attendance by calling 01982 554200 or emailing bmZ1LmN5bXJ1QG5mdS5vcmcudWs= by Tuesday, 25 June.
NFU Cymru would like to thank Barclays Bank for their kind sponsorship of the event.
Keynote speaker biographies
Minette runs a tenanted family farm in Wiltshire. The mixed farming business includes a 100 cow continental cross suckler herd, and a small herd of pedigree Herefords as well as sheep and arable. Diversification includes the conversion of a 17th Century tithe barn into a wedding and corporate events venue, and horse liveries. Minette co-founded the campaigning initiatives 'Ladies in Beef' and the 'Great British Beef Week'.
She has been an NFU member from grassroots through to County Chairman; she served as Wiltshire’s Council delegate and also as Regional Board Chairman for the South West. Minette has also been a member of NFU Governance Board and served as NFU deputy president for four years from 2014 to 2018. Minette is also a Trustee of Farm Africa.
Lesley Griffiths was brought up in North East Wales and has lived and worked in Wrexham all her adult life. She has 2 daughters and has served as a school governor and community councillor. She worked at the Wrexham Maelor Hospital for 20 years. Prior to her election she worked as constituency assistant to Ian Lucas, MP. As a strong supporter of devolution for Wales, she played an active role in the 1997 'Yes for Wales' campaign. She is a member of Unison.
She was elected to the National Assembly for Wales in May 2007 and served on several Assembly Committees. She set up and chaired the Cross Party Hospice Group. In December 2009, she was appointed Deputy Minister for Science, Innovation and Skills. Following re-election to the National Assembly for Wales in May 2011, Lesley Griffiths was appointed Minister for Health and Social Services and in March 2013 was appointed Minister for Local Government and Government Business. In September 2014, she was appointed Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty. In May 2016, following re-election, she was appointed Cabinet Secretary for Environment and Rural Affairs. Lesley was appointed Cabinet Secretary for Energy, Planning and Rural Affairs on 3 November 2017. On 13 December 2018 Lesley was appointed Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs.
Outside of politics, her main hobbies are music, walking and watching Wrexham Football Club. Lesley is formerly an elected director of the Wrexham Supporters Trust.
Hannah Jackson’s main two passions in life are animals and adventure.
In 2019 adventure loving Hannah completed the selection process for SAS-Who-Dares Wins. Surviving in arctic conditions in the Chilean Andes, Hannah was the first intake which included female recruits and was one of the only 2 females to complete the course. She thrives on the extreme challenges and the ability to test both her physical and mental resilience and strength.
After completing her degree in animal behaviour and set to study a master’s degree in marine biology, Hannah has a chance encounter with a new born lamb. An encounter that resulted in a change of career and saw Hannah swap city life for the rural hills of Cumbria. As a ‘female redheaded townie’, she entered a very traditional and male dominated world and in the last 5 years, she not only carved a career in farming but has established her successful brand of @Redshepherdess.
Hannah has earned the respect of the farming industry. In 2018 she was a finalist for the national Young Farmer of the Year. She is an active ambassador for the farming industry and is currently on the national judging panel for the NFU Farmvention Programme, aimed at supporting schools to engage with how food is produced. She is an ambassador for the National Sheep Association and is a regular speaker at conferences and events – sharing her perspective as a new entrant and young farmer. She is active on all forms of social media with tens of thousands of followers.
Hannah’s love of wildlife has seen her complete a number of projects including contributing to a Killer Whale research project for Orca Lab, where she lived for weeks on a cliff in British Columbia in a tent with no running water or electricity whilst observing the impact of tourism on whale’s behaviour.
Hannah thrives on challenge’s and pushing herself to her limits. Therefore, she is keen to inspire and be an example to more young people to show that it is possible to achieve your dreams and ambitions with hard work, determination and commitment.
Hannah is regularly featured on TV and radio, both sharing her story and contributing to thought leadership pieces.
Hannah is an avid Cross fitter. She competes in team-based competitions such as Tribal Clash Portugal. She loves to swim, climb, kayak and paddle board.
