Real stories, real impact: How Elli found her future in farming
- Apr 22
- 2 min read
Some stories are waiting to be told. Not just to promote a programme or fill a social media feed — but because they change what people think is possible.
The challenge
Cumbria Connect runs one of the UK’s first nature-friendly farming apprenticeships, placing young people into working farms across Cumbria to learn conservation-led land management. As a new organisation, they needed needed funders, farmers, schools and partners to understand what the programme really looks like, and why it matters. They came to Land & Sky to tell that story through one of their first trainees: Elli Foxton, a young woman from an urban, working-class background who had moved to the Lake District.
Our approach
Elli’s apprenticeship spanned three farms — Lowther, RSPB Naddle Farm and the Ernest Cook Trust at Mungrisedale. Dom joined Elli across multiple days and sites, filming when the timing felt right for her and the Connect team. Elli is a young woman from an urban, working-class background. She, Bailey and I all wanted to tell a story that shifted perceptions — something that would make young women watching think: there’s a space for me here, in conservation, in farming and in the landscape.
— Dom, Director, Land & Sky
Elli and Dom chose to record her story as audio rather than on camera — so it was less pressured, and felt more natural. In the edit, Dom created a non-linear narrative, moving through seasons, farms and tasks, capturing both the range of the programme and the depth of Elli’s experience. Staying small was deliberate: it meant we could follow the work rather than stage it, and let Elli just be herself.
Why representation mattered
The farming and conservation sectors have a well-documented diversity problem. Who gets to work the land — and who feels entitled to — is shaped by class, background, geography and gender. Elli’s story proves that this can be different.
What Cumbria Connect said:
Bailey Lamburn, Communications Manager at Cumbria Connect, on why they chose Land & Sky — and what the film has done for the organisation: We felt there was a real synergy with Land & Sky — your previous work in regenerative farming and the environmental sector meant you understood the subject matter. But it was the authenticity of your work that really stood out. Audiences are looking for something grounded now, something with people talking in their own voice. We’ve shared the film through our social channels, with all our partner organisations, and we’re taking it into schools and to the farmers we work with. We’ve had fantastic feedback on Elli’s story — and just how powerful it is. Watch Rural Futures here:
Impact so far
Since launch, Cumbria Connect have shared the film across their social media channels and with all partner organisations. It’s now part of a programme of school visits and sector events — giving the apprenticeship a face, a voice, and a story that can travel.
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