Cheshire Agricultural Chaplaincy

Anne Stones

After finishing school in 1979, I went on to study Agricultural Marketing and Business Administration at Harper Adams. This opened the door to my first role at Farmore Farmers in Craven Arms, where I worked as Product Manager for seven farm shops. Managing a team often older and more experienced than me and acting as buyer taught me a lot about people and the challenges of rural business life.

In 1986, when my father fell ill and sadly passed away, I made the decision to leave my career and return home to run the family farm in partnership with my mother. Over the years, I faced new challenges, including tackling problems with the palatability of our grass. A turning point came when I was awarded a Tesco Scholarship, which took me to Australia to study “Sustainable Agriculture Soil Health, Your Wealth!” This experience transformed the way I farmed and inspired me to bring back fresh ideas, including organising two UK conferences with Graeme Sait to share this knowledge with others.

Outside farming, horses have always been my passion from point-to-pointing in my early days to hunting, which has been a great escape from the pressures of farm life.

I feel privileged to be part of the Agricultural Chaplaincy team, where I hope my own experiences from running a family farm, coping with loss, managing family dynamics, divorce, and the everyday pressures of rural life can help me offer understanding and support to others. Now retired from farming, I am committed to giving back to the community that has given me so much.