Welcome to our Autumn update for 2023. As the leaves change, we’re here to provide you with news of our teams’ summer endeavours, covering the events calendar, policy developments, and the latest advances in our ongoing research projects.
Policy Update
You can read an update from GWCT Scotland's Head of Policy Ross Macleod right here.
Dates for your diary
Edinburgh & South East Scotland Drinks Party – Crookston House – 7th December
Get into the festive spirit early and join the committee for a fun Christmas drinks party, with a raffle and small auction, plus the hip flask challenge! Find out more here.
A snapshot from the last quarter…
July - The Listen to the Land talks tent at the Scottish Game Fair returned for a second year, and were busy with talks and discussions from a wide range of authors, chefs, and photographers.
August - Chloe Forbes started in a new role for Scotland, as Head of Development, focussing on major donor fundraising, sponsorship, and internal and external communications.
September - Dr. Nick Hesford has now taken on the role of Head of Advisory for Scotland. Martyn Davies and Felix Meister also joined the advisory team this month.
The Scottish Demonstration Farm
GWSDF Updates from Dr. Louise de Raad (Head of Research, Scotland):
Flock Update
1825 lambs (941 ewe lambs, 884 wether lambs) were sorted, and based on the number of ewes scanned (1,388), this gives us a lambing percentage of 131.5% with a mortality of 24.5%. For context, the national average for outside lambing is c. 20% mortality, but with our high proportion of gimmers (over a third of the flock are first-time mothers) and our added OPA, our slightly higher percentage is to be expected.
Funding
The new AECS application for 2024-2028 has been submitted. This should see c. £30K coming into GWSDF annually (slightly more than under the current AECS). CNPA has submitted its funding application to HLF (Horizon 2020 funding) for the delivery phase of the FutureFarming Project starting in 2024. This should see around £50K of funding coming into GWSDF over the next 4 years and supplement the AECS funding.
Treeline Forestry has submitted a felling license application to Scottish Forestry, required to clear the wind blow and carry out necessary thinning works later this year. We held a successful open day collaboration with Pasture for Life and No Fence Technology Ltd attended by c.40 people and received very positive feedback.
Regenerative Farming
We are part of a separate mob-grazing project with Pasture for Life and CNPA and have visited Blair Atholl’s home farm as part of this. A holistic management plan for the farm is being developed (initial draft by Dyfan Jenkins, Louise de Raad, and Alastair Leake) with support from two new consultants with expertise in regenerative farming. Focus on commercial viability, demonstration of novel techniques, and whole system functioning and enhancing biodiversity.
Lowland Research Updates from Fiona Torrance
This Summer we were delighted to find out that specific wild bird seed mixes are proposed to be established and managed for 2-3 years (rather than the current one year) in the draft agricultural reform programme. This was a result of working with NatureScot through the PARTRIDGE project.
In June, GWCT and other members of the PepsiCo FAB project met Lorna Slater MSP at the Royal Highland Show where we discussed the achievements at Balgonie and how farmers could be better supported in the future.
New students welcomed to our Scottish Research team
You can meet our new students here.
A time of change for the Advisory team
2023 has continued to be a busy year for our Advisory team with high demand for all aspects of our services. In particular, we have been exceptionally busy assisting estates with the health and disease monitoring of red grouse. This follows a poor grouse breeding season for many and an anecdotal increase in tick numbers. Given the results that we are seeing across Scotland in respect to positive louping ill virus cases, this is a big priority for the industry, and having a suitable action plan in place is essential. As such we continue to liaise with Moredun Research on the development of a new LIV vaccine.
Role Changes
We are also delighted to announce a number of changes to Scottish Advisory that will transform the scope and scale of our service offering. Firstly, Hugo Straker has long been the ‘well ken’t face’of GWCT in Scotland and, as part of a long-term transition, Hugo has been coaching Dr. Nick Hesford to step into the management of the Scottish Advisory team.
Nick formally took on the role of ‘Head of Advisory Scotland’ at the start of September. Hugo has moved to three days a week in the capacity of ‘Lead Advisor’ and we hope to free him up for business development among other critical, client-facing, roles.
New Team Members
We also welcomed two new faces to the Advisory Team in September, Martyn Davies and Felix Meister. Martyn joins the trust as a deer and forestry advisor. With a background in all aspects of forest management, Martyn learned from the ground up being involved in establishment, forest protection, and harvesting. This has been combined with a fascination with deer management. Martyn has managed deer in the open range and the low grounds. More recently Martyn was the senior lecturer for Arboriculture, forestry, and game at SRUC. In his free time, Martyn is an active member of the shooting world and enjoys working dogs.
Although Felix is new to the Advisory Team, he has been working with the GWCT for almost a year. He previously worked as a supply research assistant for the Scottish Research team, where he conducted a systematic review of the biodiversity effects of land management in the uplands. Felix has also worked as a gamekeeper and has a background in Classics.
Finally, from September, Fiona Torrance will split her role between her primary role in the Lowland Research team, including managing thePepsiCo project, to also provide a technical role in Advisory – supporting services in farmland ecology. Once Natural Capital metrics come online in Scotland, alongside the potential to grow farmer clusters, we can see a growing need for services in this sector.
Membership Update
We ran a really interesting evening with Neil McIntyre at the Black Watch Museum in Perth earlier in the year which was attended by around 40 people. Sponsored by Bushwear, it was a free-to-attend event where Neil took everyone through some of the photos he used for his most recent book, “Chasing the Deer” and gave some insight into his passion for deer and the countryside.
We also ran an event with Sir Johnny Scott in The Tapestry room at Hopetoun House in May. Sir Johnny took us through a journey of his life from his early years, to staring in “Clarissa and The Countryman” and his ongoing passion for the countryside and views on what we need to do to protect it.
We plan to hold more members’ events before the end of the year with a webinar, a Pie & Pint evening and hopefully a pub quiz all in the offering.