We would like to wish a fond farewell to Andy Dibben, our Farm Manager, as he leaves The Farm for pastures new.
Here’s a goodbye message from Andy:"With a mixture of excitement and sadness, I will be leaving The Community Farm and moving on to a new farm in January.
I was approached in the Autumn by a well established organic farm in Gloucestershire that was looking for a New Head Grower. I had been considering a move already and, as it became apparent that the position came with on site accommodation, the offer was too tempting not to consider. I am a father first and foremost, and the opportunity to give Connor and Archie my 10 and 8 year old sons a 1,600 acre back garden, including 100 acres of woodland was too good to refuse.
I’m excited because life is an adventure and the new job will see my family and I moving to the Cotswolds to live, work and go to school in a completely new part of the country. I am sad because my time at The Community Farm has been a life-changing experience where I have had the opportunity to meet the most fantastic variety of people from all walks of life, make lifelong friends and learn an unbelievable range of new skills from a variety of talented teachers, mentors and colleagues.
I believe that this project has already touched the lives of thousands of people and has the potential to reach and benefit many thousands more.
I would like to personally thank all those people who have made this possible: the founders for their vision and entrepreneurial spirit; founder members and shareholders as without you this would all still be a pipe dream; all the fantastic volunteers that have come to the farm and become such a critical part of the team; and staff past and present who have all given so much more than has been asked of them.
I wish you all a happy and fulfilling future and will always watch the progress of The Community Farm with a feeling of pride that I was able to play my part in this huge team effort."
