Medal joy for Land Army’s Joyce

A former Land Army girl from Bridgend has been recognised for her valuable contribution to Britain's war effort.

Joyce Collins, aged 82, formerly from Ogmore-By Sea but now living in Bridgend, was just 15 when she joined up, doing work like bailing hay and straw, digging up potatoes and snow clearing in and around the farms and fields of the Vale of Glamorgan.

She even found herself chasing rats around the barn and ‘disposing’ of them with a pitch fork.

Now, more than 60 years on, she has received a certificate and a medal from Defra, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, to mark her efforts.

Her three daughters then contacted Bridgend County Borough Council and the authority arranged for the Mayor of Bridgend County Borough Jeff Tildesley to formally present the medal to Mrs Collins.

Mrs Collins said: “It actually was a wonderful life and I really enjoyed that time. My mother wasn’t so pleased though. One day a local farmer gave us all a sack of potatoes as a thank you for the work we had done for him. When my mother saw me arriving home at the gate she said ‘I never thought I’d see a daughter of mine walking up the road carrying a sack of potatoes’.

“Of course girls were very much girls until then and the sight of them doing manual work was sometimes distressing to their mothers. But we all loved it and it’s nice to receive this medal recognising the contribution we made.”

Mayor Tildesley added: “It’s a pleasure to meet this wonderful lady who, like so many others, did work that meant the men could go away and fight to give us our freedom. This medal is thoroughly deserved.”

As well as sharing her memories with the Mayor, Mrs Collins also brought in some other reminders of her Land Army Days – photographs and her Land Army breeches, still in excellent condition and complete with their 24 inch waist label!

One of Mrs Collins’s three daughters. Jayne Thomas, said she was delighted her mum’s contribution has been recognised.

She added: “I’d like to thank Bridgend County Borough Council for arranging this lovely afternoon for our mother and the Mayor for making this presentation which means so much to all of us.”

To apply for the Women's Land Army medal, call Defra on 08459 335577 or visit http://www.defra.gov.uk/foodfarm/farmmanage/working/wla