Bures and District Agricultural Club, near Sudbury, bows out after members gather one last time to celebrate 80th anniversary

All good things must come to an end – and so it was the case for a long-standing Suffolk farming group, which gathered one last time this week to celebrate its history.

Thirty members and friends of Bures and District Agricultural Club bid farewell, as they celebrated its 80th anniversary at Assington Country Kitchen on Tuesday afternoon.

It was the final meeting of the organisation – which has its roots in the ‘War Ags’ movement of the Second World War – as it prepares to close down, due to an ageing membership and insufficient volunteers for committee roles.

Attendees included 96-year-old Colin Cracknell, who joined 79 years ago with his father, founding member John, and has remained active with the club ever since.

Organiser Rosemary Ingram, who has been involved with the club for more than half a century, stated its end was “sad but inevitable”, but that they were pleased to be able to mark this great milestone.

“We knew this day was coming, so it was not a shock,” she told SuffolkNews. “A lot of members feel sorry it’s ending, but they know their limitations and know they’re getting older.

“I joined the group in 1971, after I met my husband, who is a farmer. He has always been heavily involved, and I’ve supported him in that, and the children have been involved in various ways as well.

“It’s sad, because it has a great history and played a great part in the village. It was a very pioneering club, but it has gone the way of so many other organisations.”

Bures and District Agricultural Club was founded in the autumn of 1943, overseeing monthly meetings of local farmers and sharing knowledge on how to maximise food production during the war.

A year later, the club also started organising an annual furrow drawing and ploughing match, which remained a popular fixture of its calendar for many decades.

Throughout its life, the group evolved its itinerary to include regular organised visits to farms and agricultural businesses, as well as talks by one of its first members, Allan Steel, whose daughter Fiona Brooks is now the club secretary.

Although it was originally a male-orientated group, women gradually took on a more prominent role and appeared in committee positions – notably the long-time incumbent chairman, Una Oakes.

Rosemary said: “It was becoming obvious that, with creeping age, several members did not want to take posts of responsibility, numbers at meetings were dwindling and more and more members did not have a direct involvement with farming – just a love of rural life.

“Through the stoical efforts of Una, the club limped on. She organised a great Christmas quiz evening each year, ably assisted by her husband, Brian, and other members.

“It was, by now, a question of the club closing. With the 80th anniversary this autumn, the club existed in name only, so that it could mark this great milestone.”

She added that members will be distributing club funds to various charities, and also plans to archive records and memorabilia to preserve its history.