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It’s a frosty morning on Kidsley Farm in Derbyshire, a rare thing in this unusually warm winter.
Andrew Dakin’s beef herd is housed in the old brick barns, their breath steaming in the chill air.
Alongside scuttling chickens and tractors of varying vintages, this is the very image of a traditional farmyard. But for how long? Andrew is a tenant farmer and his landlord, who owns the land, wants to turn his pasture into a solar farm.
“Our old way of life will be gone forever. And I’ve worked on this farm all my life, seven days a week. I’ve not been on holiday since I was 15. Not because I didn’t want to, but I like being here on the farm.”
His family has worked the land here for 94 years. His mother still lives with him in the farmhouse. Although he would be allowed to stay in his home and is being offered some compensation, with the grazing replaced by photovoltaic panels, the job would be gone.
“It’ll all be fenced off with 10ft-high deer fencing. I think solar panels have got a part to play on house roofs, factory roofs and brownfield sites.”
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