NES3003 : Applied Farm Business Management
- Offered for Year: 2024/25
- Module Leader(s): Mr Simon Parker
- Lecturer: Dr Jeremy Robert Franks
- Owning School: Natural and Environmental Sciences
- Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus
Semesters
Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.
| Semester 1 Credit Value: | 10 |
| Semester 2 Credit Value: | 10 |
| ECTS Credits: | 10.0 |
| European Credit Transfer System | |
Aims
The module aims to
1. Develop a basic understanding of the principles of business management based on planning - control -
monitoring - analysis - revision.
2 To develop the basic principles (taught in ACE2020) relating to the combination of resources to achieve
efficient resource-use to develop a profitable farm business.
3 Teach the tools necessary to allow students to plan, control monitor, analyse and revise plans at the farm
and enterprise level.
4 Develop an understanding of the factors which affect the efficient use of the principal fixed farm resources
- land, labour, machinery and capital, and the role of entrepreneurship in creating profitable enterprise and
farm businesses.
5. The use of workshops allow students to practise the use of various analytical tools (cash flow budgeting
tools, partial and full farm budgets) to prepare enterprise and whole farm financial and management plans.
6. To develop the skills required to estimate the value of farm resources, and to be able to present in written
form recommended valuations, financial and management plans and to compare and contrast alternative courses
of action.
Outline Of Syllabus
1. Farm record lectures and workshops:
- enterprise records
- recording cashflow
- calculating profit
2. Forward Budgeting lectures and practicals:
- whole-farm profit budgets
- cash flow budgets
- partial budgeting
3. Valuation and depreciation lectures and workshops
4. Farm Planning
5. Accounts Analysis
6. Introduction to commercial farm management software involving accounts, budgeting and enterprise recording
7. Introduction to land tenure: tenancy agreements and rent assessment
8. Machinery planning, organisation and acquisition
9. Investment appraisal techniques
10. Personnel management; labour planning and organisation, and labour legislation
11. Farm finance: sources of farm finance.
12. Introduction to taxation: income tax, national insurance, capital taxation.
Teaching Methods
Teaching Activities
| Category | Activity | Number | Length | Student Hours | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 2 | 10:00 | 20:00 | Case studies |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 23 | 2:00 | 46:00 | N/A |
| Guided Independent Study | Project work | 2 | 20:00 | 40:00 | N/A |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Workshops | 8 | 1:00 | 8:00 | Semester 2 drop in workshops to assist with learning |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Fieldwork | 1 | 6:00 | 6:00 | Field visit to the host venue to look at a farm for "tender for rental" purposes |
| Guided Independent Study | Independent study | 20 | 4:00 | 80:00 | N/A |
| Total | 200:00 |
Teaching Rationale And Relationship
Lectures introduce the main concepts and principles of farm management (aims 1 and 2).
Lectures also introduce analytical tools that are used to monitor and control farm businesses and farm enterprises (aims 3 and 4).
In-class workshops allow students to practice the analytical tools that are taught in the lectures (aims 5). These workshops are undertaken as individual study and in small groups to help verbal communication of recommendations (aims 5 and 6).
The main piece of assessed coursework allows students to use their imagination to construct an original farm management tool (aims 4 and 5), to integrate enterprise husbandry knowledge within diverse farming systems (aims 2 and 6) and to understand the role of farm management and financial accounts in planning and control (aims 1, 2 and 6).
Assessment Methods
The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners
Other Assessment
| Description | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Case study | 1 | M | 40 | The accounts exercise gives students an opportunity to tabulate financial accounts from cash flow and other information (10 pages). |
| Case study | 2 | M | 60 | The tender for rental, an individual exercise, requires students to construct a farm plan and estimate a rent for a farm (16 pages). |
Formative Assessments
Formative Assessment is an assessment which develops your skills in being assessed, allows for you to receive feedback, and prepares you for being assessed. However, it does not count to your final mark.
| Description | Semester | When Set | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Written exercise | 1 | M | A precursor to the Case study undertaken in class during which students undertake the completion of exercises to construct business accounts, and to Analyse the accounts to establish what is affecting the business. |
Assessment Rationale And Relationship
This is an applied subject in which techniques and concepts must be practised in problem-based assignment work. The accounts exercise examines students understanding of lectures related to building a set of farm management and financial accounts to allow performance to be analysed and corrected (aims 4, 5 and 6). The tender for rental examines students understanding of tenure systems, the link between tenure and rental payments and their ability to estimate the value of farm resources and to present this understanding in written form (aims 5 and 6).
Reading Lists
Timetable
- Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
- NES3003's Timetable