Find your place in the field of good food

Our goal is to connect good people with good food. We advertise sustainable food jobs and training opportunities to help jobseekers and employers find each other.

Roots to Work is a project of Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming.

Job description

A Pathway into Ecological Farming: No Farming Background Required

Applications are now open for the 2026 intake of the UK’s only Ofqual-regulated Level 3 Diploma in Biodynamic Farming & Growing, awarded by Crossfields Institute and delivered by BDAC.

Designed for new entrants and career changers, this programme provides a rare gateway into meaningful, skilled, land-based work — without going into debt and without needing a farming background.

Why This Programme Is Distinctive

Most land-based training in the UK is either unpaid or classroom-based. BDAC’s model is different:

✔ you train on a real farm

✔ you are employed as a trainee

✔ you earn wages (minimum wage or above)

✔ your training is certified and internationally recognised

✔ your learning covers biodynamic and organic methods

✔ you finish with employable skills and a vocational qualification

This is one of the very few routes that leads directly to paid agricultural work, CSA/market garden roles, or founding your own ecological enterprise.

Real Skills for Real Futures

Graduates leave prepared to:

• run or join market gardens and CSAs

• work in agroecology, horticulture or regenerative farming

• develop community food enterprises

• pursue further study in agroecology or land-based education

• take on roles in food system transformation

Demand for skilled ecological growers continues to rise in the UK and internationally as community food networks, CSA models, regenerative farming and local supply chains expand.

Employment + Training Structure

Once enrolled, you are matched with a training farm where you become an employed trainee with:

• employment contract

• 35–44 hrs/week (seasonal variation)

• minimum wage or above

• professional mentoring

• structured skill progression

Your wages typically cover living costs and fees.

Training fees:

• £500 initial payment

• 24 monthly payments of £360 (Includes seminars, seminar accommodation & lunches, assessment, QA, registration and certification.)

Entry Requirements

✓ 18+ (21+ recommended)

✓ GCSE-equivalent education (Level 2)

✓ physical capacity for outdoor work

✓ motivation for self-directed study

✓ 3–6 months land-based experience preferred

Please note: If you do not have any land-based experience, we suggest introductory experience via routes such as (WWOOF, volunteering) to ensure this path is for you.

Start Dates & Deadline

We are currently enrolling for our upcoming intake. Application deadline for this cycle: 28 February.

Successful applicants will be supported in securing placements after the deadline on a rolling basis.

Seminars run on a continuous rotation, allowing flexible start dates once placement is agreed.

Application information

Submit expression of Interest Form here: https://bdacollege.org.uk/work-based-training/how-to-apply/

Send CV to info@bdacollege.org.uk

Shortlisted applicants will be contacted for conversation and placement matching.

Please mention Roots to Work when applying for these jobs