AN AMBITIOUS farming project which would employ former members of the armed forces has received a generous donation from a Clacks-based veterans' group.

The JCR Community Veterans' Pioneer Farming Project was handed a cheque for £300 by members of the Wee County Veterans group at the Sauchie Resource Centre on Wednesday, March 18.

The project's CEO Catherine Cooper was there to meet members of the group and collect the donation.

Through the project, Catherine hopes to set up veteran-operated farms on vacant land across the UK.

She previously told the Advertiser: "The project has been years in the making – beginning in 2014 with a study into the potential to use derelict land for renewable energy production – adding regenerative farming was the next logical step.

"Here in the UK we spend much of our time and resources today trying to solve the symptoms of societal breakdown.

"The JCR project goes right to the root cause – providing jobs, food and reducing isolation as we work together to solve a very real problem."

Speaking about the donation, she said: "It's invaluable because without the support of the veteran community, what's the point in doing [this]?

"The veterans are our main stakeholders, so it was a huge endorsement for me to come and see [them] all so enthusiastic about it."

She added: "The group is going to help me look at land across Clackmannanshire and wider so see which of these sites we'd like to get.

"I'd like to get the site at Castlebridge and I'd like to turn that into a nettle production facility for textiles."

And Jo Wilkinson, founding member of the Wee County Veterans group, said: "Cath has this project to help veterans, so Wee County Veterans has some funds, and as out motto is 'veterans helping veterans' we decided we would donate what we could."

To find out more information, or donate towards the JCR Community Veterans' Pioneer Farming Project, visit tinyurl.com/tqzy3mr.