Oliver Scott

I graduated from Harper Adams in September 2005 with a degree in Agri Food Marketing and Business Studies, which is associated with the Chartered Institute of Marketing. The course covered all of the principles of marketing and strategic business planning and gave me a solid understanding of marketing activities.

I have subsequently held a number of roles which have helped extend my understanding of the working environment and develop my commercial skills. I am confident in communicating, having had the opportunity to work with a wide variety of clients, from the general public to family owners.  I am a good team player, encouraging all to work together, but also have the ability to work to my own initiative.

My first Assistant Farm Manager’s role was at W. A. Davey & Son, a farming family on the borders of Hampshire and West Sussex, situated between Petersfield and Midhurst.  The farm is now run by one of the sons, Peter Davey, to whom I was Assistant. Cropping over 2500 acres, the farm consist of Cereals, Potatoes, Onions, Asparagus, Grain Maize and 500 head of Beef animals. The farm has also diversified as a franchise into agricultural waste management.

As Crop Production Manager for Holkham Farming Company, I looked after the seven in house farms totalling 2,300 ha, reporting to the Farms Director.  The land is managed by Holkham Farming Company, which was set up as the contractors to look after the farming operation, which operates from the central grain store, employing all staff, buying all machinery and bulk buying all agricultural inputs.  This was restructured in 2012,  when we changed machinery policies and made staff more responsible and accountable for their own operations.

I worked together with the Farms Accountant, based in the farming company office, to prepare all of the annual budgets. This also allowed us to have tighter control on cost management and makes forecasting easier.

During my time at Holkham, I was involved in the management and refurbishment of the grain and grain store facilities, where we had taken 10,000 tonnes of storage up to 25,000 tonnes.

In 2016 I moved to the Thelveton Estate as Farm Manager the 2500 ha estate in based in South Norfolk, I looked after the in-hand farming operation which consisted of 1,850ha of OSR, Cereals, Sugar beet, Beans, forage maize and fallow land. They have 300 ha of grass land, and the woodland is managed under a woodland management plan. The estate had 400 head of suckler cattle plus followers and are finishing 900-1000 head of bull beef per year. Thelveton estate has 154,000m3 of water, of which some is winter surface water abstraction and the other Bore Hole water. I also project managed the insulation of a new Reservoir scheme, which opened up a block of land on the western side of the estate, this was to generate a new income stream and reduce some of the financial risk on the estate, I believe water is a very important commodity and will help to future proof the estate.

I am currently the Farm Manger on the Bradford Estates. Bradford Estates is responsible for approximately 12,000 acres on the Shropshire and Staffordshire borders. We continuously invest in our land and property with the future in mind. Guided by our heritage, knowledge and a commitment to doing things the right way, we develop sustainable practices across farming, forestry and placemaking.