Top cop and businesswoman quit jobs to save family's fifth-generation farm

Top cop and businesswoman quit jobs to save family's fifth-generation farm

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A change of career has caused 'ups and downs' for a West Yorkshire family but they have 'no regrets'. Lucy Stevens decided to swap her beauty business to getting down and


dirty to save Horncastle Farm following the death of her grandfather in 2014. Not wanting to let her family's fifth generation farm go, Lucy sold her salon, called Bluebelle in


Wakefield in 2021 and convinced her husband Chad, to take a career break from his role as temporary Chief Inspector of Humberside Police last October. Now, Mr and Mrs Stevens not only look


after cows and sheep on the 200-acre farm on the border of Pontefract and Wakefield, but also have their hands full with their three children. “Our story is pretty unique due to the lack of


farming roots between Lucy and I," Mr Stevens said. "Lucy used to come and stay on the farm of a weekend when she was young with her grandparents but didn’t really get involved in


any activity so when we took over in 2014, it truly was a case of what do we do now? “Helped by some expertise from people who have worked on the farm for decades, we have slowly got to


grips with it and have now made the decision to give up our jobs and try and make the farm a success. “We have three children – Herbie, Arnie and baby Posie – and the boys absolutely love it


on the farm. “It’s very different from our former lifestyles but we wouldn’t swap it for the world and – so far at least – we have no regrets about becoming full-time farmers.” The pair’s


story features on the opening episode of Talking Crop, a new podcast launched by Goodyear Farm Tires to celebrate farming families in the UK. Mr Steven said: “We feel privileged to be the


first guests on Talking Crop. “Farming families have had a really tough time over the last two years so it’s fantastic of Goodyear Farm Tires to set up a podcast which celebrates those


people who devote their life to their farm." The debut series of Talking Crop will feature six episodes and will delve into the unique successes, challenges and choices farming families


face. Goodyear Farm Tires has a proud history of supporting farming families and will sponsor that category at the British Farming Awards for the third consecutive year in 2025. The themes


the podcast will cover is succession planning, diversification of farming and relationships between family members. Natalie Dukes, Marketing & Communications Manager at Goodyear Farm


Tires, said: “Farming families are the lifeblood of the British agricultural scene so to be able to acknowledge and celebrate this group of people through a new podcast is a genuine


privilege. “We want to provide a unique insight into the hard work, dedication and benefits which farming families bring to the country and to open the farm door on some fantastic stories.


“Lucy and Chad have a wonderful story so it’s fantastic that they will be the focus of our first podcast of this series. “Goodyear Farm Tires has been an integral part of the British farming


industry for many decades and our tyres are on tractors, from modern to classic and right through to vintage. “Our strapline is Generations of Growth and there felt no better way to show


our support to farmers than creating a podcast series to celebrate those families who have dedicated their lives to the industry.” The Talking Crop podcast is available on all major podcast


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