About

I consider myself to have a rather unique skill set which includes:

• Agriculture
• Education
• Media Skills

My rather unique skill set is really linked to my life and the different jobs I have done.

I was born and brought up a farmer and on leaving school did a degree in Agriculture after which I returned home to work on the family pig and arable farm. During the 15 years I spent doing this I was instrumental in its expansion from 25 to 130 acres and a small pig herd to one rearing and finishing pigs from 120 breeding sows. During this time, I developed my IT and photography skills – computers where in their infancy during my time at school and university. My computer skills developed from my computerising all the farm accounts crop and pig records. Just as the pigs hit a financial crisis, I realised the farm had expanded as far as it could go and would not continue to support myself, my sister and my father, so I took the difficult decision to seek employment elsewhere.

I have still maintained my links with agriculture initially with the work I did for the Discovering Our Countryside website part of which involved visiting farms to film and also when helping organise and run school visits to farms.

Having exhausted this career avenue, I then became the level 3 course manage for Agricultural Apprentices. This job was like coming home, allowing me to use my life time’s knowledge of agriculture coupled with my educational skills to train today’s farmers in the work place.

Whilst doing this I then had the opportunity to go back farming with outdoor pigs which is what I am doing now.