Curiosity Day Sarah Bell -
Manor Farm, Rutland

The first Be The Change Farm Curiosity Day in Rutland brought together farmers, advisors, land managers and rural professionals at Sarah Bell's farm for a day of open discussion, shared learning and practical insights.

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The event offered a fascinating showcase of Sarah's approach to farming, demonstrating how soil health, business resilience, nature recovery and family values can work together to shape a thriving farm business. Throughout the day, it was clear that this is a business driven by strong values - community, family and responsibility sit at the heart of every decision.

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Collaboration​

One of the key themes emerging from the day was the power of collaboration. Bringing together people with different experiences and perspectives created valuable conversations and challenged participants to think differently about the opportunities and challenges facing farming today…the Carbon Calling way!

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Discussions ranged from practical ideas for integrating willow into farm systems, supported by expertise from the Woodland Trust, through to conversations about Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) and the implications of inheritance tax and capital gains tax changes for family farming businesses. These topics prompted thoughtful debate and highlighted the complexity of balancing environmental opportunities with long-term business sustainability.

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The session focused on succession planning, with expert input from Andy Guy was really valuable. The discussion reinforced the importance of starting early and keeping things simple. Rather than viewing succession as a daunting process, participants were encouraged to begin by clearly defining the roles and responsibilities of the farm team and building a plan from there.

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Reflecting on the day, Sarah said:

"It's always great to welcome different people to the farm. There was interesting discussion and robust debate about the relative merits of lots of different approaches. As a result, I am now in touch with individuals who I would never have met any other way. It was a very valuable day."

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The day demonstrated the value of creating space for honest conversations, practical knowledge-sharing and new connections.

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Up next...

Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed their expertise, questions and perspectives. We look forward to doing it again in Cumbria this week with Alan Robinson and in July in Lancashire at Liz Hargreaves’ farm.