Working on farms is a common way of spending some time in the UK and earning some money at the same time. It gives a direct experience of the British countryside.

In 1984 Hanna Serafinowicz (from Gdańsk) worked on a strawberry farm while 10 years later in 1994 Petr Fejt (fom the Czech Republic) worked on a hop farm. Here are some of their experiences.

Hania – It was in 1984 after my first year of studies. I wasn’t particularly fond of picking strawberries but it was the best way to go to England....it was during the communist regime. I had invitations from friends in Britain who were boys.... they weren’t my boyfriends but they happened to be boys....for the British embassy this was suspicious. The invitation from the strawberry farm was very safe....they simply recognised the invitation. Everything was legal.

Petr – It was a long time ago, 7 years I think....it was my first experience of the British countryside. I applied to the Concordia Agency which gives jobs to people who are under 26. We had a work permit and visa for three months.

(what kind of people were working there?)

Hania – It was a multicultural experience - there were many nationalities....I remember a Slovakian girl, many Polish people, from Nigeria, French, I think there was somebody from Sweden. There were British people....students who went there not to make money but to meet international friends. You were paid by how much you picked but in the factory you were paid by the hour so it was better. It depended on you how many hours...you didn’t have to and if the weather was bad....some people for instance the English didn’t go when it was raining or if they wanted to go somewhere...it depended on you. I tried to earn money because I needed it. It was in Tunstead in Norfolk.

Petr – There were about 30 people....half of them were English, half of them were foreigners....Czechs, Poles and so on. The interesting thing was that we had the same wage which was GBP3.10/ hour. It was near Worcester.

(what were the conditions like?)

Hania – we lived in ‘barracks’....we slept in ‘double-deckers’ I mean bunks....ohoh! We worked in the fields, in the factory on night shifts. In the factory we had to sort the strawberries out...sometimes I couldn’t see what I was doing so I couldn’t se if they were sorted properly. In the ‘freezer’ they were frozen which was hard as your fingers got stiff and when you had to work for three hours there you got very tired. It was hard work but it was a good experience.

Petr – it was a very hard job for me and monotonous because all we had to do was to lift up the hops and put them on a hook all the time....it was under the roof. We worked 8 hours a day and we worked day shifts and also nights....we did the same job but it was lit under the roof so we could work there....

(what did you think of people in the British countryside?)

Hania – I went to the church on the Sunday....it was an Anglican church. I was the only new person there...after the church they all came to see me and asked me questions....where was I from.... One person invited me home....it was really very nice. They were educated so it was easy to communicate with them but the people in the field....our supervisors were the local people and not very educated, it was really very difficult to understand them. We didn’t have to talk much because strawberries are strawberries and we knew what to do....but sometimes when we started talking to them.... It was funny for us because we were students of English and we couldn’t communicate.  

Of course from a country that was a kind of prison at that time it was a culture shock. Now when you go abroad it’s not the same but then....when you were young....it’s different....

I think English country people were perhaps curious of us because we were strangers....I think that perhaps everywhere country people are nicer more generally than people in towns....because they live a different kind of life....

Petr – I think good people with a good sense of humour....they were local people not students.... We were in the pubs, we were.... They were more polite and more open than in the Czech Republic. I met no one who was unfriendly or impolite....if I needed help and asked everybody helped me....it was very nice

(what did you think of the British countryside?)

Hania – for me it was a shock to go to the middle of nowhere and find a telephone....Tunstead was a very small place. In the early 80’s it was unusual for the Polish countryside. We thought that we wouldn’t be able to phone Poland and from this place you could phone all over the world. I also liked the landscape....the architecture of the old church....

Petr – in that area it rained a lot I mean....the weather was not very pleasant. There weren’t so many forests, for example, as in the Czech Republic....there were a lot of hedges....I noticed a lot of pheasants but I learnt they kept them for shooting

(did you get to see some more of the countryside?)

Hania – we had time to go to the pub and to the village. After picking strawberries I went as a tourist with my friends. I was hitching all over England....so first  a month of hard work and then the pleasure of sightseeing.

Petr – some small trips....we didn’t have much time because of the work but still at  the weekends we had some time so we did some walking....we visited Worcester, I went to the Brecon Beacons....