Frank Arden was the eldest son of a tenant farmer on the Lincolnshire Cliff. His early interest in business was stimulated helping his Mother with her free-range egg enterprise. A short spell as a butchers apprentice followed leaving school at 16, before he returned to the farm. He was reputedly offered a celebration party on coming of age at 21 or a tractor and chose the tractor.

His business interests developed in scale and success based on an ability to harness new technology and seize opportunity wherever it presented itself. In the early days, the farming business was supplemented by a grass drying enterprise. Arden tractors were easily recognisable by their orange roofs painted as a warning to incoming planes whilst harvesting grass on the many Lincolnshire airfields. The core business always remained the arable farm with the quality Lincolnshire potatoes and grain activities both housed in extensive World War 2 aircraft hangers. One of the early adopters of irrigation, the borehole water sources were identified by a water diviner. Large scale battery chicken operations, a dairy herd and several pig units developed during a career that spanned many interests and an equal number of counties as the business spread to interests in Scotland, Yorkshire and Oxfordshire.

The real ethos of the Frank Arden spirit was a willingness to learn and a generosity in sharing information. Many events were held on the Arden farms the Sugar-beet demonstrations, potato harvesting events and a major Soil and Water two day conference. Discussion groups, overseas visitors and local groups visited on a regular basis long before the advent of communication to the general public was recognised as a necessity. He held many committee and council posts and his contributions were recognised with the award of the CBE for services to Agriculture. The Frank Arden Nuffield Memorial Scholarship is a fitting tribute to a person who valued people and always sought to make a difference.