Women in agriculture business skills training - focus groups: final report

5. Conclusions

This chapter sets out the conclusions and recommendations. Overall, the focus groups provided positive feedback on both course outlines, and felt that they cover a diverse range of topics that will develop the financial skills of women in agriculture and enable them to make informed decisions about their businesses.

The research points to the need to ensure that the courses provide clear guidance, and are designed to be suitable for women with businesses of different sizes, from individual crofters to large farms. The courses should be delivered to small groups at a suitable time of year, and create a network of women in agriculture for attendees to share advice and support. This will contribute to a long-term, positive impact.

This report has discussed the findings of four online focus groups carried out to inform the development of two new business skills courses for women living and working in Scottish agriculture as part of the Women in Agriculture programme, titled 'Knowing Your Finances' and 'Knowing Your Business'.

This research provides evidence of the need for practical financial training for women in the industry, who carry out a range of financial tasks on their crofts, farms and in agricultural businesses. The majority see themselves as being self-taught and have not had any formal training. They are unsure if they are completing tasks in the correct way, and lack confidence which impacts their ability to carry out financial tasks and take part in decision-making and business planning.

Focus group participants said they would like to build their confidence, skills and knowledge in this area. Overall, they provided positive feedback on both course outlines, and felt that they cover a comprehensive range of topics that will develop women's financial skills in key areas (e.g. accounts, tax, VAT) and enable them to make informed decisions about their business if they progress onto the second course.

The majority of participants felt it was clear which course was suitable for them and most said they would be interested in doing both. They provided a small number of suggestions to improve the course outlines, including changing the course titles.

5.1 Recommendations

These research findings will inform the development of both the 'Knowing Your Finances' and 'Knowing Your Business' courses. They indicate the need to:

• Ensure that the first course is practical and suitable for women with no experience, providing clear and simple guidance, and pointing attendees to further support if needed
• Ensure that both courses are designed to be suitable for a range of women in agriculture, including those in crofting and farming, and to take practical differences in financial tasks and business planning into account
• Consider how to assess whether participants have basic computer skills and how to support those who need training before attending the course, and which accounting software or computer packages to cover on the course
• Acknowledge wider challenges within agriculture and how these impact on women's ability to carry out financial tasks and become involved in decision making, business planning and diversification
• Ensure the courses are delivered in an engaging way, through a mix of sessions (e.g. interactive, group discussions) and that attendees are provided with a range of practical learning resources they can use and refer back to
• Run the courses at a suitable time of year – taking the farming calendar into account, and advertise them widely to women across Scottish agriculture. Winter was the preferred time of year for focus group participants
• Deliver the course to smaller groups of 10-15 women and consider how to organise the cohorts (e.g. by ability or mixed) to ensure that all of those taking part benefit and are able to share their experiences
• Ensure the course is delivered by people with agricultural backgrounds and includes real life case studies and examples
• Include an environmental impacts module in the course, equipping agricultural businesses with information on the need for change and sustainability in relation to future changes, for example carbon audits, tree-planting, and new sources of income.
• Ensure the course leads to the successful creation of a network of women in agriculture to share business tips and skills, connecting attendees with women in crofting and farming across Scotland
• Consider how to recognise attendees' completion of both courses and the skills they have developed, for example with a certificate
• Plan the monitoring and evaluation of both courses and gather feedback from the first cohorts to ensure the training is meeting the needs of women in agriculture
• Consider how to offer continued learning options, for example for attendees who wish to develop their skills further or measure their progress using the tools and information they have gained on the course.

A checklist for course providers summarising the key points for course content and delivery identified through the research is included in Table 1.

Table 1. Checklist for course providers

Course content

• Deliver both courses in a practical way, providing clear and simple guidance and pointing to further support if needed
• Include real life case studies and practical examples
• Acknowledge wider challenges within agriculture and how these impact on women's ability to develop their businesses
• Build women's confidenceby giving them up-to-date information and the knowledge to complete financial activities efficiently
• Cover a range of topics of interest to women in agriculture, including environmental impacts, diversification and profitability
• Give course attendees time to share and discuss their financial skills, agricultural experience and business ideas
• Offer continued learning or point to further opportunities

Course delivery

• Training providers should have an agricultural background
• The course titles should be straightforward and explanatory
• It should be clear who the courses are suitable for and what level of knowledge applicants are expected to have
• Design the courses to be suitable for women with agricultural businesses of different sizes, from small crofts to large farms
• Assess whether participants have basic computer skills and offer further support or training to those who do not
• Deliver the courses to smaller groups of women (10-15) and through a mix of sessions e.g. interactive, group discussions
• Provide course attendees with a range of practical resources
• Run the courses at a quieter time in the farming year, e.g. Winter
• Create a business skills network for women in agriculture
• Offer a similar course on business skills to men in agriculture
• Recognise completion of the course/s with a certificate