Popular festive meets take place across the country providing boost for rural communities

Supporters of local hunts up and down the country have turned out to attend traditional festive meets across the country despite the wet weather.

Meets, which see supporters turn out to watch hounds and horses parade through town centres and villages, took place today, 27th December, instead of Boxing Day this year, as Sundays are a non-hunting day.

The majority of hunts in England went ahead with festive meet plans, given that government guidance on outside events remains unchanged. One of the hunting community's main concerns was the impact wide cancellation of meets in towns and villages would have on the local pubs, shops and businesses that have already suffered considerably throughout the pandemic but who would benefit so greatly from the additional custom they would have as a result of meets continuing to taking place.

Ralph Richardson, joint-master and huntsman of the Middleton Hunt, based in Yorkshire, which hosted two meets in Driffield and in Malton said: "Our meets have yet again been well attended by those for whom so many it is a traditional part of their annual festivities and as well as parading in the towns, we also took the hounds to visit a local care home which brought smiles to the faces of the residents. We were happy that this year those attending our meets could support the local pubs and shops which, like so many other local businesses, have had a difficult year."

Mary Perry, joint-master of the Cotley Hunt, encouraged people to take precautions ahead of the meet in Chard, Somerset, to help prevent the spread of the virus: "We circulated advice ahead of the meet to urge those attending to take a lateral flow test and to please stay at home if the test was positive or if they felt unwell. We also advised those gathering on foot to wear masks in confined spaces and to social distance wherever possible."

Polly Portwin, Director of the Campaign for Hunting at the Countryside Alliance said: "Festive meets are hugely popular and well attended by both hunt followers and local communities, for whom the event has become a cherished family tradition. While many meets have been smaller scale this year due to the restrictions, they have still provided a big boost both socially and economically across the countryside, as does trail hunting throughout the season.

"The popularity of this annual spectacle, which is an opportunity for hunts to welcome people who might only see a hunt on this one occasion each year, shows no signs of waning, despite more than 16 years operating under the confines of the Hunting Act. We hope that next year, meets can return to their full glory which can see crowds hit the hundreds of thousands."

Elsewhere in Britain, hunts in Scotland and Wales were subjected to separate restrictions that limited the number of people being able to attend outside events.

In Wales, where gatherings outside are limited to 50 people, the majority of hunts took the difficult decision to cancel, while those that went ahead limited attendance to participants only, in order to control any potential crowds.

The Curre & Llangibby Hunt in Wales was among those hunts forced to cancel their usual public meet in Devauden Green, Monmouthshire, due to the change in recent covid restrictions. Juliette Evans, joint-master of the hunt, said: "Although we understand the need to restrict numbers at gatherings, it was disappointing to have to cancel our public meet this year because it is usually a very social event which is an integral part of the festivities for local farmers and the wider rural community."

Meanwhile in Scotland, outside events have been limited to 500 people. While there are only eight registered hunts operating in Scotland, attendance at festive meets can reach into the thousands, so crowds were limited to 500 people.

Tim Allen, Master and huntsman of the Duke of Buccleuch's Hunt who met at Floor's Castle, near Kelso said: "With the changes to outdoor events coming into force in Scotland yesterday, we've had to limit the number of those attending to 500 people which is a considerably smaller crowd to usual, however, we were delighted to be able to go ahead and hope these new measures will help slow the spread of the virus."

Unlike the rest of Britain, New Year's Day meets are more of a cause for celebration for Scottish hunts than Boxing Day and they will, like hunts in Wales, continue to operate under the guidelines until there are any further guidance changes. Hunts across the country will ensure that any government guidelines regarding the organisation of outdoor events in relation to the developing covid situation are adhered to, while encouraging participants and supporters to take the advised precautions to prevent further spread of the virus.

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