CEVAS origins and status

The origin of the Countryside Educational Visits Accreditation Scheme lies in the Policy Commission on the future of Food and Farming set up by the Prime Minister in August 2001. The Commission argued that:

"...the key objective of public policy should be to reconnect our food and farming industry ...to reconnect consumers with what they eat and how it is produced."

With this point in mind, the Policy Commission suggested a number of strategies, including the explicit need for schools to develop stronger links with farms.

In July 2003 the notion of a training programme was endorsed by the Minister for Rural Affairs and Urban Quality of Life the President of the NFU. A training scheme that had been developed in Buckinghamshire under the auspices of Farming & Countryside Education (FACE) working with a local farmer/trainer, provided the key starting point.

During November 2003, FACE was appointed to carry see through the training. Farmers were invited through organisations such as Farms for Schools, Federation of City Farms and Community Gardens and Defra to participate in a pilot programme to run during 2004. More than 100 farmers from a wide range of farm types with different experiences of running educational visits, were registered. Ninety-six farmers successfully completed the course and received their certificates from the Minister at the 2004 Royal Show.

Subsequently, a successful application was made for funding from the Vocational Training Scheme operated by Defra in order to mainstream the CEVAS course. Funding was secured for a period of three years for the training of an additional 500 farmers.