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Helping
out at Axton Chase After the excitement of last year's show, I wasn't going to let the lack of a club stop me from being a part of this year's experience! And what a valuable experience it was. I decided to offer my services to another club. Although I wasn't a particularly formidable showman, I had plenty of experience preparing sheep for exhibition, and I was sure this could come in handy to some club somewhere. Kent Young Farmers' is made up of school clubs and open clubs, and I wanted to continue working with young students at a school club. I hoped to work somewhere where my presence would really make a difference - Axton Chase proved to be that school. Axton Chase school farm has only recently been re-established after closing several years ago. It is based in the Spectrum centre, which is a specialist teaching facility for children with special needs. Axton Chase young farmers' club is made up of children from the Spectrum centre, and helpers from the main school. Whilst at the centre, I worked particularly closely with two young girls called Marianne and Chloe. Despite the challenge of training four uncooperative lambs during one of the hottest weeks on record, the girls showed a remarkable determination to prove themselves. Their time and effort paid off - by the time the show started, Axton Chase had four placid, fluffy, white lambs! Chloe and Marianne weren't the only ones to be proud of the result they earned. A young boy called Nathan worked extremely hard preparing his Dexter cow for the show. With a bit of help from Mrs. Flight (the farm manager), Buttons looked great and walked very well. Even when the calf was stubborn, Nathan stayed confident and took control of the situation; a skill that many his age find difficult, especially with the pressures of being in a show ring. Nathan, Chloe and Marianne were some of the friendliest young farmers I have ever had the pleasure of working with, and they showed a real passion for getting their livestock looking right, and doing well in the show - regardless of who they were up against. Although the young farmers worked extremely hard, the show would not have been such a success for Axton Chase were it not for the amazing effort put in by Sheila Flight. It is not an easy task to run a school farm unit, especially around County Show time, when so much attention is focused on the animals. It is harder still to cater for children who require constant supervision because of their special needs. Sheila, however, kept everything under control, be it caring for the animals, children, or her own family members. Even an experienced club leader would have found this show a daunting challenge, yet Sheila handled everything that arose very professionally and with a lot of confidence, despite this only being her second County Show. She worked extremely hard to ensure her young farmers made it to the show, and gave up most of her free time to prepare and care for the livestock. Without a doubt, the show would not have been possible without her. I also had the joy of working with Sheila's family, who all mucked in to lend their mum a hand. Zara also showed a Dexter, and have up many hours to help Chloe and Marianne prepare their sheep. Axton Chase did extremely well this year, and the result of all their hard work was a well-deserved rosette for every member! I'm very grateful to Sheila and Axton Chase for letting me help them out this year. I saw for myself that special needs don't need to be a barrier to success, and I was able to see that school farms provide many benefits and opportunities to students who aren't necessarily comfortable with the national curriculum and classroom environment. Axton Chase is clear evidence of how vocational alternatives can benefit the neediest students in our schools and across our communities. I won't forget the experiences I've had working there, or the kindness and hospitality of the club and people running it. Most of all, I look forward to seeing them at the show next year - bigger and better than ever!
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