by Tractorfest Admin | Nov 2, 2023 | tractorfest
It’s always difficult to know where to start with the “thank yous” for Biddenden Tractorfest as there are so many people who give their time, expertise and support – so I suppose the best place to begin is a big thank you to each and every person who contributed to this year’s Biddenden Tractorfest.
We were delighted to welcome 14,500 visitors over the weekend, and we have been overwhelmed by the generously kind feedback we have received since. It was quite something to see the number of visitors waiting for the gates to open on both mornings, meaning the site was buzzing right from the very start, and we really are so grateful that you chose to spend your day, or whole weekend, with us.
Thanks too to all of our exhibitors, stand holders, those who gave demonstrations & put on interactive displays, and all who joined us with things to see and do at Biddenden Tractorfest. It’s not just the hard work put in over the weekend, but also the hours spent preparing vehicles, setting up stands and getting ready in the weeks and months before – time and effort that most certainly does not go unnoticed and we are very thankful for.
Our fantastic committee, who are all volunteers and give many hours into organising their sections and bringing them together on site to work perfectly hand in hand with one another.
Our section managers are as follows:
Tractors: Susan Thomas, John Kingsnorth & Lawrence Richards
Horticultural Machinery: Kevin Castle
Stationary Engines: Stephen DeCicco
Steam: Ashley & Sarah Pettitt
Classic Cars: Adrian Best & Ginnie Coles
Emergency Services: Jamin Beer
Animals: Helen Stow / Mount Lodge YFC
Music: Caroline Hopkins
Trade & Vice-Chair: Kim Reeves
Catering: Bill Stacey
We are also lucky to have additional volunteers join us across the weekend, many returning for their second year with us and others joining us for the first time in 2023. This includes Norman Searle, Cherry Cornelius, Liz Smith, KCAS Rural Scholar Alice Edmonds and the Kent Police Cadets. Mervyn & Angela Reeves & Kelly Clark (Merchandise tent), Bernard Pike (commentator), Andy Gardner (commentator), Alec Homewood, Emma & Mrs Homewood (tractor rides), Christina Tyler and L3 Agricultural Engineering student Ethan Jarvis-Barker of Hadlow College (tractor rides) and Ollie Collyer (tractor rides).
Our sponsors, who have provided services or support – Principle sponsor Kent Design Studio along with ASH Scaffolding, Biddenden Farm Shop, Biddenden Walking Rural, Biddenden Vineyards, Biddenden Parish Council, The Broyle Country Show Ringmer, Coppard Plant Hire, D Body, Edit Our Day, G Bridgland Ltd, GM Woodgate & Son, Hadlow College, Invicta Insurance Services, JPF Farms, Mark Hellier Tractors, Oak Surveys Limited, S J Barnes Ltd and Staplehurst Transits. Many thanks must also go to everyone who supported through taking advertising in this year’s programme and on our show rings throughout the site.
The Kent County Agricultural Society including the Kent County Show and Kent Event Centre teams, Kent County Showground grounds team and KCAS directors, who helped across the weekend and our show manager, Lucy Hegarty, who have once again brought the expertise and connections to put key infrastructure in place and allow Biddenden Tractorfest to run smoothly.
Julian Barnes, KCAS Chairman, owner of Biddenden Vineyards and committee member, whose vision continues to keep this important event running in Biddenden and also provides a meeting venue for us throughout the year.
Robert Lewis, who allowed us to use his field for parking with support from White House Farm’s Peter Sargent.
And a special thanks to Michael Palmer, who allowed us to return to the much loved venue of his fields for yet another year.
Once again, I am so proud of what our team has achieved. To stand on the gate on set up day seeing in exhibitors and sending an almost endless stream of vehicles in all shapes, sizes and colours to their relevant section, have every single one perfectly sited and to watch Holden Farm transform seamlessly from empty fields into Biddenden Tractorfest is something that I think will always amaze me.
As always, planning for next year started before this year’s event had even finished, and we will be sharing more updates in due course.
Until then, thank you all again for your ongoing support.
Vikki Eames, Chair, Biddenden Tractorfest
by Tractorfest Admin | Jan 28, 2023 | tractorfest
Biddenden Tractorfest is organised by a team of volunteers and the Kent County Agricultural Society (registered charity no: 1001191), to raise money to support the future of agriculture in Kent and to support clubs, amenities and charities within the local area.
We are proud to announce that we have been able to support the local associations, clubs, groups and charities listed below with donations totalling over £10,000.
Many of these, and others, were also supported with free or discounted stands at Biddenden Tractorfest 2022, which they were able to use to generate additional funds and awareness. (Applications for these stands are now open at https://www.tractorfest.co.uk/exhibit/ – Biddenden Association/Charity Application)
We have also donated an additional £10,000 towards the Kent County Agricultural Society’s own charitable activities (more information at www.kcas.org.uk ).
In addition to the above, we are delighted to have sponsored the transport for three local Primary Schools – John Mayne Primary School in Biddenden, Benenden Primary School and Sandhurst Primary School – to attend this year’s Living Land (a free one-day event at the Kent Show Ground open to Kent primary school children in years 3 and 4 aimed to educate children in areas of farming, agriculture, the countryside, and healthy eating).
Recipients of donations from Biddenden Tractorfest 2022 are:
Wealden Community First Responders (to be used to provide an additional public access defibrillator in Biddenden), Biddenden Strummers Ukulele Club, Biddenden Community Library, Mount Lodge Farm & YFC (pictured), The Take Away Pantry (Biddenden), Biddenden Local History Society, Biddenden Homemakers, Biddenden Bowls Club, TaDah Theatre Co, SERV Kent – Bloodrunners, Wellbeing In The Weald, Ashford & District YFC, Childs Vision, Farm Safety Foundation – Yellow Wellies, Team Ben Hammond and Air Ambulance Charity Kent Surrey Sussex.
A big thank you to all who supported Biddenden Tractorfest 2022, and therefore helped us to be able to make these donations.
by Tractorfest Admin | Dec 21, 2022 | tractorfest
Tickets are now on sale for Biddenden Tractorfest 2023, to be held in the fields of Holden Farm, Sissinghurst Road over the weekend of 19th & 20th August 2023.
Tickets are available to purchase at advanced prices here.
Tractorfest offers a fun day out for all the family, with local stands, demonstrations, food & drink, music, classic cars, stationary engines, steam engines, horticultural machinery, emergency vehicles and of course, plenty of tractors!
Don’t forget to follow us on our social channels to keep up to date with all the latest Tractorfest news:
Facebook –
www.facebook.com/BiddendenTractorfest
Instagram –
@biddenden_tractorfest
Twitter –
@Tractorfest
by Tractorfest Admin | Nov 18, 2022 | tractorfest
We are delighted to announce that Biddenden Tractorfest 2023 will go ahead on the weekend of 19th & 20th August 2023, returning to the fields of Holden Farm, Sissinghurst Road, Biddenden. Tickets will be on sale in the coming weeks, along with applications for exhibitors, trade stands and caterers.
For the latest updates, please check back soon and don’t forget to follow/like us on social media to be the first to know all the news from Biddenden Tractorfest:
Facebook: /BiddendenTractorfest
Instagram: @Biddenden_Tractorfest
Twitter: @Tractorfest
by Tractorfest Admin | Sep 20, 2022 | tractorfest
It’s been a month since Biddenden Tractorfest 2022 and with the team rested and revived, there are quite a few thank you’s that we need to give!
So, thank you to…
All of our exhibitors, stand holders, those who gave demonstrations & put on interactive displays, and all who joined us over the weekend. There is so much time & effort put into preparing vehicles, setting up stands and across the whole weekend, and we really do appreciate your time and effort.
Everyone who visited over the weekend. The aim of Biddenden Tractorfest is to offer a traditional, family day out in the Kent countryside, and we simply wouldn’t be able to do that without your support. Thanks also to everyone who took the time to give such positive feedback both in person and on our social channels – it really does make all the hard work worthwhile!
Our amazing committee, who give up hours of their time not just over the weekend but in the week leading up and months before planning, preparing and bringing together each of their sections seamlessly. Our section managers are as follows:
Tractors: John Kingsnorth, Susan Thomas & Paul Bridge
Horticultural Machinery: Kevin Castle
Stationary Engines: Stephen DeCicco
Steam: Ashley & Sarah Pettitt
Classic Cars: Leon Price
Emergency Services: Jamin Beer
Animals: Helen Stow
Music: Caroline Hopkins
Trade & Vice-Chair: Kim Reeves
Catering: Bill Stacey
Site: Lawrence Richards & Ben Cooper
The volunteers that joined us across the weekend, including Norman Searle, Cherry Cornelius, Lee Govier, Sonia Farmer, KCAS Rural Scholar Alice Edmonds, Denise Lievesley, Roland Rosner, Kiaya Purchase, Teresa & Perdy Hutchings (11 years old), Lucille (Biddenden Vineyards’ French intern), the Police Cadets and Kent Federation of Young Farmers’ Clubs. Mervyn & Angela Reeves & Kelly Clark (Merchadise tent), Bernard Pike (commentator), Andy Gardner (commentator), Alec Lockwood (tractor rides), Steve Pike and others from Hadlow College (tractor rides), Jumbo Saunders and Trevor Charman from the Rural Past Times Show (tractor rides), Bill Giles from Weald of Kent Steam Rally who kindly provided coal.
Our sponsors, who have provided services or support – ASH Scaffolding, Ashford & Tenterden Tourism Association, The Bell and Jorrocks, Biddenden Farm Shop, Biddenden Walking Rural, The Broyle Country Show Ringmer, Danny Body, FarrisWeb, Invicta Audiovisual Ltd, Invicta Insurance, GM Woodgate & Son, Kent Design Studio, JPF Farms, Mark Hellier Tractors, Oak Surveys Limited, Print Big UK, Staplehurst Transits, Mount Lodge Farm & YFC, Ashford YFC and Team Ben Hammond.
The whole of the KCAS team, KCAS directors Jan Loraine, Hugh Summerfield & Clare Seymour who helped across the weekend and our show manager, Lucy Hegarty, who have brought the expertise and connections to put key infrastructure in place and allow Biddenden Tractorfest to run smoothly from traffic management, to health & safety and so many other areas in between.
Julian Barnes, KCAS Chairman and owner of Biddenden Vineyards, who has been a huge part of ensuring Biddenden Tractorfest was able to continue as a local event, as well as providing a venue for meetings to take place throughout the year and whose staff did an amazing job helping litter pick the site after the event. Robert Lewis, who allowed us to use his field for parking.
And a special thanks to Michael Palmer, who allowed us to return to his fields – certainly a much loved venue by exhibitors & visitors alike.
I have to say, I am in awe of what our team achieved, and we are already starting to look at plans for next year. Watch this space for further updates!
Vikki Eames, Chair, Biddenden Tractorfest
