A farming couple who are facing eviction from land their family has occupied for centuries have moved to highlight the plight of tenant farmers. David Yates first took over the tenancy on Earls Farm on Stitch-Mi-Lane in Harwood in 1995, with wife Karen having also run a beauty business and cattery from the site. But in March 2022 the couple received a notice saying that they were facing eviction, have tried to fight a case to stay on the land at the civil courts and have now set up a petition highlighting the plight of tenant farmers around the country.
Mrs Yates said: “We, the Yates family, initially had 160 acres, today we are left with 12.5 acres. “Formerly a dairy farm, our family at Earls Farm have been the custodians of this land for over 300 years.
The land at Earls Farm (Image: Public) “We have farmed, tended and maintained this land for many generations, we are fighting for our heritage, livelihood and family home.” Mrs Yates says that part of the land was taken over by the council in 2007. She said that she and her husband believed they would be put on a new contract when building was finished on the new St Catherine’s Academy but heard nothing more until 2020.
Mrs Yates said that she believed that they would have been able to take ownership of the land having occupied it for more than 12 years thanks to an adverse possession order. But the couple were still told that they would have to leave by April 30, 2022 and having refused to do so, took their case t.
