STUDENTS from the West Midlands swapped the classroom for the countryside as they visited a Dorset farm and agricultural college for an educational initiative.

It was all about trying to inspire young people from 'urban backgrounds' to consider a career in food and farming.

The pilot programme, Reframing Nature, is an initiative from McDonald’s UK working in partnership with Dorchester's Kingston Maurward College.

Set over three days, the programme saw 11 students from St Thomas More School in Walsall visit the county to learn more about pursuing careers in the land-based sector, which included hands-on experience at a McDonald’s organic dairy farm - Flagship Farm in Sherborne.

The pilot, hosted by Kingston Maurward College and Dorset McDonald’s franchisee Chris Truscott, enabled students to be immersed in a variety of practical activities onsite at the college, providing them with the chance to learn more about animal welfare and wildlife conservation. The visit ended with careers and employability advice from industry experts.

During the visit, students also heard from the McDonald’s Supply Chain team and one of the brand’s long-term dairy suppliers to understand more about working in the food and farming industry, and completed the farm to front counter experience with a behind the scenes tour of the Dorchester McDonald’s restaurant.

Mr Truscott said: “The food and farming sectors are a huge part of community life in my home of Dorset. Therefore it was important to me to spearhead this initiative to show young people from other parts of the country what careers in this sector, and across the McDonald’s supply chain, can look like. The more young people we can engage in these careers, whatever their background, the stronger our industry will be in future – from farm to front counter.”

Frances Jenkins, Careers and Industry Lead at Kingston Maurward College said: “Encouraging young, diverse talent to consider land-based careers is so important for the future of this industry, which is why we’re proud to be involved in this pilot programme. To be able to provide students from urban backgrounds with an experience of the sector, and to shine a light on the sorts of careers available within it, is just brilliant and we hope initiatives like this inspire more people to consider a role within land-based industries in the future.”