The Bishops of Reading and Buckingham are encouraging their clergy and local churches to offer support to the farming community during the current outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease. The surveillance zone drawn around the outbreak of the disease in Surrey includes areas which fall within the two Bishop's patches.
The Bishop of Reading, the Rt Revd Stephen Cotterell said, "East Berkshire is normally thought of as a rather urban area but it has some significant tracts of rural areas including Windsor Great Park. Our thoughts and prayers are with those who are anxious about and affected by the outbreak in Surrey both within the surveillance zone and also those affected by movement restrictions in the rest of the county and further afield".
The Bishop of Buckingham, the Rt Revd Alan Wilson, whose area covers parts of the Slough Unitary Authority which is also within the surveillance zone is hoping the disease will not spread any further. "There are churches present in almost every rural community. We know that there will be long term affects for all in the farming community as a result of this outbreak; clergy and local church people are ready to provide the support needed."
The diocesan rural team is letting the farming community know the support available to them.
Berkshire rural officer John Townend is Chaplain to the Royal Berkshire Show and will be taking a service in the Show Ring on Sunday at 9.30am at which prayers will be said for the whole farming community and those directly affected by the outbreak.
Revd Canon Glyn Evans co-ordinates the rural officers for the diocese and also works for Farm Crisis Network. He said: "It is important that those who are anxious are supported. They can contact local churches, and they can ring the FCN helpline for support as well". FCN has a national Helpline staffed by volunteers which is available daily from 7.00am - 11.00pm (07002 326 326). Callers to this number are offered support from local FCN groups and other farming support organisations as appropriate.
The current outbreak comes on top of a particularly difficult summer for farmers in the region, many of whom had crops devastated by the summer floods.
The Bishop of Oxford has established a flood relief fund which has so far raised over £38,000 through support of local churches and individuals, and farmers have been able to claim some help from it.
Notes:
1. Berkshire Archdeaconry Rural Officer The Revd John Townend Tel: 01488 638566 Email: john@jptownend.freeserve.co.uk
2. Diocesan Rural Officer Canon Glyn Evans. Tel: 01295 788021 Mobile: 07870405241 E mail: glynpe@tiscali.co.uk
3. Farm Crisis Network is a Christian organisation which draws volunteers from rural churches and the farming community. Contact with FCN can be made confidentially through its national telephone Helpline on 07002 326 326, which is staffed from 7am to 11pm every day of the year, with answer-machine cover at other times. For more information about this press release or details of how to support the work of FCN please email mail@fcn.org.uk or visit www.fcn.org.uk
4. For further information, contact the diocesan press officer on 01865 208 284 or page 07623 946222.
