Farming families from across the country have donated thousands of toys for a display outside NFU Conference today, each with their own message to Rachel Reeves about what the changes to inheritance tax will mean for their children’s futures.
The basket of toys, a symbolic gesture representing a farm and a future generation that could be lost, was delivered by NFU members Hazel and Tom Church, their 5-year-old son Bertie, together with Hazel’s father 66-year-old Martin Towler, who run a 210-acre livestock farm and tenant a further 400 acres.
They could be hit with a huge inheritance tax bill if the policy goes ahead.
“Our boys loved to play with this toy combine, hoping to drive the real one when they grew up”
Message to the Chancellor attached to donated toy
‘There may be no farm left at this rate’
Hazel Church said: “The family farm tax is a real worry for us.
“We’re just a small family farm in Bedfordshire and we know the changes to inheritance tax will hugely affect us. We could be facing a bill of about £400,000. That is an awful lot of money, more than our annual profit for 10 years, money which then can’t be reinvested back into the business to make it more resilient for the future.
“We also can’t gift it as this would trigger CGT (Capital Gains Tax) due to the debt within the business.
“This toy means the world to me. My heart lives here on the fields I have worked to own with my parents, brother and sister and now work with my wife and children to continue owning.”
Message to the Chancellor attached to donated toy
Photograph: 5-year-old son Bertie Church delivers his message to Rachel Reeves
“I’d love to meet Rachel Reeves and explain how this will impact us as a small family farm. I worry, as an urban MP, that she may not know farmers or understand farming.
“I respect her for that as it can be a complex business to get your head around.
“But the key point is farmers don’t get money when they inherit, they get the farm, the business asset, and often the debt.
“I’d be keen to bring her to our farm, show her what we do and sit down with her and the NFU and talk about how we try to make it profitable and viable, which is already extremely difficult and going to become even more difficult.
“My main concern is for the future. There may be no farm left at this rate for my son, who wants to be a farmer. We’re not alone either. There are thousands of farming families who will be in this position.”
A display for the generations
As cherished toys passed down through the generations were delivered to the Chancellor, members stopped to share a moment outside a display of toys at the NFU’s Conference.
Featuring a range of new and old machinery, the display represents the importance of farming through the generations, and all that is at stake if the family farm tax goes ahead.
Members can be seen reading the messages attached to each toy, explaining how the Chancellor's proposed changes to inheritance tax will affect them.
Photograph: Pre-loved tractor toys greet NFU Conference delegates outside the QEII centre
“I have worked all my life caring for the same land that my father and grandfather worked before me. I want my son and grandsons to have that same bond with farming.”
Message to the Chancellor attached to donated toy
Future hangs in the balance
NFU President Tom Bradshaw delivered a thank you message to the Church family, as well as acknowledging the “incredible role” members have played in the NFU’s pre-loved toy donation ask.
“We can’t ignore the symbolic donation of pre-loved farm toys being delivered to Rachel Reeves, or the huge collection on display donated by farmers from all over the UK which all represent a farm that could be lost, and the generation which could lose it.
“Each toy represents a child who, until this family farm tax was announced, planned a future as one of the nation’s food producers. That future now hangs in the balance.
“'Honkey donkey’ is 50 he has been played with by generations of our family and others. Our farm has been in the family for over 100 years. This tax would be the end.”
Message to the Chancellor attached to donated toy
"Our message is very clear. We will keep fighting this battle until the government starts to listen, considers our alternative proposals and ultimately takes action.”
“These toys are very important to us, we’ve played with them since we were small children – we were hoping that one day we’d be able to swap them for real ones.”
Message to the Chancellor attached to donated toy
Photograph: A message from Henry Albutt reads “I was hoping to be a fifth generation farmer, but now looking doubtful!”
A thank you from the President
In a personal thank you message to members, Tom said: “This effort has been about more than just collecting toys: it has been a statement. A statement that when the farming community stands together, we are impossible to ignore.
“A statement that we will not allow these damaging tax proposals to go unchallenged. A statement that the future of British farming matters, not just to us today but to the generations that follow.
"None of this would have been possible without you. The power of our community lies in our unity, and this campaign has proven once again that together, we are stronger
During his opening address at Conference, Tom relayed the power of this message to delegates, calling the donations “a poignant reminder of the awful impact this policy will have”.
See key moments captured throughout the day:
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Members gather in a moment of unity for the Stop the Family Farm Tax campaign
Pre-loved toy display outside NFU Conference 2025
Tom Bradshaw talking to 5-year-old Bertie and his mum Hazel
