AT Manor Farm this week, Ian has been welding lugs onto the muck trailer to ensure that it is good working order. Maintenance is an ongoing process on farms, with equipment and machinery requiring inspection on a regular basis to ensure that it is fit for purpose. This is particularly important as most machines are large, heavy and powerful and could cause serious accidents and injury if farmers are not diligent.

We have our farm assurance visit coming up, so Ian has been making sure that all the paperwork is in order. The Dairy Scheme Standards are part of the Red Tractor Food Assurance Scheme, assuring food safety, animal welfare, hygiene and environmental protection through every part of the food chain.

There is a big emphasis on looking at the welfare of livestock, as well as ensuring certificates for the maintenance of machines are up to date.

Livestock are selected at random for a thorough inspection, assessing for signs of lameness, abrasions and ill health.

Livestock trailers will be looked at to ensure that the construction is sound, with no sharp edges, are clean and that the necessary vehicles to tow them have the correct towing capacity.

Our livestock trailer requires a vehicle which can legally tow 3.5 tonnes. Bedding and shed conditions will be inspected, as will treatments of cows in terms of antibiotics given, dose rates, withdrawal periods for the inclusion of milk in the bulk tank and mortality rates, to name but a few. It is a lengthy process, but vitally important to ensure that we remain certified and can produce food for the consumer to the highest possible standards.

During the winter months, ditch management is necessary to ensure that drains do not become blocked and cause flooding. Ian has been unblocking culverts to ensure that this does not happen. It is details such as these which ensure that the countryside remains accessible, productive and unspoilt and can be enjoyed by all those who care to appreciate it and the work that is required to maintain it.

While Ian has been busy at Manor Farm the Wiltshire Young Farmers' Groups have been competing against each other in the pre-Rally competition afternoon held at Lansdown Hall, Derry Hill.

They were competing against each other in dance, reading and public speaking competitions. They also compete to find Junior and Senior members of the year.

Chippenham Young Farmers' Club fielded a strong team of competitors of which we had some very good places, with Robert Gooding winning Junior Member of the year, Jessica Gooding, Georgia Taylor and Annabel Candy coming a very close second in the team reading and the dance team also had a very good second place.

All the clubs are now getting themselves prepared for the Rally day at the end of April when the members will again be competing for each of their clubs in competitions such as flower arranging, handwriting, cake decorating, cooking, tug-of-war and tractor reversing. It is always a day filled with fun and made better if the sun shines.

Meanwhile, Kevin, on Stowell Farm, has been doing the everyday tasks of feeding the ewes and bedding them up. He has also sold some finished lambs which were picked up on Thursday.

The Signet-recorded flock of ewes have been vaccinated this week with Heptivac-p-plus, which is a booster that covers the clostridial diseases. The vaccine is used in pregnant ewes as an aid in the control of lamb dysentery, pulpy kidney, tetanus and pasteurellosis in their lambs, provided that the lambs receive sufficient immune colostrum (first milk the lamb drinks) during the first one to two days of life.