ORGANISERS of the Melplash Show have stated that they are 'committed' to putting on an event this year - but have repeated that no final decision will be made until the end of March.

The Melplash Agricultural Society hosted its Annual General Meeting (AGM) over Zoom with the Melplash Show among the topics discussed. The group spoke of their desire to host an event this year but due to the ongoing restrictions and uncertainty regarding the coronavirus pandemic, stated that they will review the situation at the end of March.

This year's Melplash Show is currently scheduled for Thursday, August 26.

The meeting was hosted by the current president Nigel Jones and chairman James Vickery. During the meeting, it was confirmed that the pair, along with vice chairman Philip Hardwill, would continue in their roles during 2021.

James Vickery, president of the Melplash Agricultural Society, said: "Although we, the board of directors, are committed to putting on an event we have, due to the uncertainty of future Covid-19 guidelines, decided to review the situation at the end of March.

"It is hoped that by then we will have a better understanding of what can safely be run in August.

"We are closely monitoring guidance and looking at ways that the showground can be modified to run a safe event with the aim of welcoming everyone back to our show in August”

The Melplash Show is one of the most-anticipated annual events in the area and in 'pre-Covid' times, attracted as many as 20,000 visitors every year.

Like so many others, last year's event was cancelled due to restrictions surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.

Despite the loss of the annual Melplash Show, the society still worked hard on its charitable aims throughout 2020.

During the course of the AGM, the audience were reminded of what the charity was able to achieve during te pandemic. 19 students, aged 17 and above and living within a 12-mile radius of Melplash, received a bursary from the society to study agriculture and related subjects. The society will be running this initiative again in 2021 and applications will open on Thursday, April 1.

In addition, Discover Farming, the society's education programme, has created a number of online home learning modules for primary aged children and is encouraging young people to look at farming an agriculture as a potential career option by providing online career guidance and advice. The society also held a series of Zoom webinars which covered topics such as farming and property with representative from Greenslade Taylor Hunt and Symponds and Sampson. More webinars are being planned in the coming months.

For more information on the initiatives, visit www.melplashshow.co.uk