Meet the Land Agent: Catherine Lawson

Life as a Bell Ingram Land Agent offers variety and progression says Senior Associate, Catherine Lawson.

What is your background?

I am from a farming background and grew up on a farm in North Yorkshire.

Once I left school I went to the Scottish Agricultural College at Auchincruive in Ayrshire to study Rural Tourism. After I graduated I worked at a grain lab in Bedfordshire, having spent all my summers before and during my Degree doing the same. I quickly realised I needed office experience if I wanted to move away from seasonal grain lab work and I got a job as a receptionist and typist at a holiday park company.

While working for that company I quickly realised I wanted to work in the rural/agricultural sectors and in particular the rural surveying sector.

What qualifications did you need to become a Land Agent?

I needed to have a RICS accredited qualification to be able to work towards my RICS Assessment of Professional Competence (APC).

Having obtained a non RICS accredited University of Glasgow First Class Rural Tourism honours degree at the Scottish Agricultural College (now SRUC), I went on to complete a Post Graduate Diploma in Surveying through the College of Estate Management which gave me the necessary accredited qualification. This was completed part time via distance learning, while I also worked full time.

What’s been your career path?

I was given a great opportunity working as a Farm Secretary in Leicestershire for a national firm of Surveyors while I completed my Post Graduate Diploma. This gave me a lot of experience in all the administration involved in farm and estate management, as well as a greater knowledge of the rural property sector. It also made me realise that I had chosen the right career path and I knew that I wanted to go on and qualify as a Chartered Surveyor.

Once I completed my Post Graduate Diploma I planned my move back to Scotland and accepted a job at Bell Ingram as an Assistant Land Agent, based in the Perth office. I passed my APC and CAAV exams two years later in November 2016 and then moved to the Forfar office in June 2019 where I am now a Senior Associate.

What’s the biggest misconception of the job?

I think alot of people assume that we are always out of the office visiting clients and properties. While we are fortunate to do this a lot, we actually spend the majority of our time in the office, writing reports and providing advice. Now, with the use of Microsoft teams/zoom we find ourselves out of the office even less as online meetings become easier and more time efficient for everyone involved.

What do you enjoy about the job?

The variety of the workload is one of the best parts of the job. You never know what your day will bring and where in the country it might take you. There are often times when you are driving to a property or walking around some fields, that you have to remind yourself that you’re actually being paid to be there.

It is also a great feeling when you know the advice you have given or the report you have written has helped someone achieve their goals too.

At Bell Ingram I think we are very fortunate to have a great network of colleagues who are all happy to help and share their knowledge and experiences, which can be really useful when dealing with tricky or unusual situations. There is also a really positive workplace culture which makes turning up to the office, even on a sunny Monday morning, enjoyable.

What’s your advice to those thinking of entering the profession?

Do it! If you have a love for the countryside and are looking for great career progression opportunities and variety in your work then it’s definitely a profession you should consider. The enjoyment you get from it can’t be matched.

For more information about becoming a Land Agent and Life  at Bell Ingram contact careers@bellingram.co.uk

Future Agricultural Support in Scotland as at June 2023

The Scottish Government have provided some further clarification on the future agricultural policy we are expecting to see from 2025, as well as clarification on the future of other support schemes.

While Mairi Gougeon has promised there will be no cliff edges as businesses transition into the new support mechanisms, further detail outlining how some of the proposed measures and standards will be implemented remains outstanding. As anticipated, we are beginning to see further clarity on which direction agricultural support is going, with focus on the environment and climate change, and a move to more regenerative farming methods.

Basic Payment Scheme and beyond

New conditions for receiving Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) support will be introduced from 2025, before a new support mechanism replaces the existing scheme in 2026. We understand that essential standards will have to be met in order to receive BPS in 2025. These essential standards are focused on farming activity; climate response; biodiversity gain; whilst also safeguarding animal health and welfare standards and workers’ rights.

In 2025 farming businesses will need to start the transition to the new support scheme which is considered as a ‘stepping stone’ to 2026 and beyond, with the compliance requirements for 2025 BPS linking to Tier 1 for the new support framework. In practice, these conditions will include the following, but may have other items added.

• the maintenance of existing cross compliance requirements as a minimum for future support;

• the introduction of new protections for Peatlands and Wetlands as a new condition on basic payments;

• the foundations of a Whole Farm Plan, including soil testing, animal health and welfare declaration, carbon audits, biodiversity audits and supported business planning;

• the introduction of new conditions to the Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme linked to calving intervals to encourage livestock keepers to reduce the emissions intensity of their cattle production systems.

2026 support is likely to be structured on a tier mechanism, with Basic Support and Enhanced Support available as outlined below.

Tier 1: Base  – This will be the closest thing to a direct payment, guaranteed to all farmers and crofters who meet essential standards in farming activity; climate response; biodiversity gain; whilst safeguarding animal health and welfare standards and workers’ rights, as well as existing cross-compliance conditions

Tier 2: Enhanced – This tier will build on the standards established in Tier 1. It will focus on measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, adapt to climate change, and protect, restore and improve nature. These measures will also incentivise more sustainable and regenerative farming practices, with focuses on farming for a better climate and nature restoration.

Tier 3: Elective – This tier will be ‘optional’ and likely to be more specific to targeting a certain species or habitat, and will focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, adapting to climate change, and protecting, restoring and improving nature.

Tier 4: Complementary – Funding in Tiers 1-3 will be complemented by providing applicants with access to support and advice, as well as continuous professional development (CPD) to help achieve the aims of the future support model.

Payment Regions

The Regions model will remain, but will be reviewed prior to 2027 to ensure it is fit for purpose within the new scheme guidelines.

Greening (for arable/other cropping)

Greening will continue into 2025 and from 2026 will remain, but may alter to better integrate into the new tier system.

Voluntary Coupled Support

Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme (SSBSS) and Scottish Upland Sheep Support Scheme (SUSSS)

Both of these schemes will continue in 2025 and 2026, with consideration still being given to how Voluntary Coupled Support will be delivered in 2027

New conditions will be introduced to SSBSS in 2025 linked to calving interval performance.

Less Favoured Area Support Scheme (LFASS)

This scheme is expected to continue to 2026 but changes may be introduced from 2025 to support the transition towards a more economically and environmentally sustainable model. Consideration is still being given to how this type of support will be delivered from 2027.

Agri Environment and Climate Scheme (AECS)

This scheme is expected to continue to 2026 to deliver elements of Tiers 3 and 4 until new Elective and Complementary Support is implemented from 2027. Some the options currently available through AECS are being considered for inclusion in Tier 2 so that more people can implement them.

Forestry Grant Scheme (FGS)

This Scheme is expected to evolve and continue to deliver elements of Tier 3 and 4 until new support is implemented from 2027. Some of the options available under this scheme are being considered for inclusion as eligible measures/activities in Tier 2 so that more people can implement them.

Planning for the future

Preparing for Sustainable Farming

This new grant scheme is already open for applications for helping businesses prepare for changes, with support for conducting carbon audits and soil sampling, support for animal health and welfare activities and access to herd data for Suckler beef producers through MyHerdStat.

Put simply, the scheme allows businesses to claim £500 for an eligible carbon audit, up to £600 per 100Ha of Region 1 land for soil sampling and £250 as a development payment alongside the first soil sampling payment for farmers and crofters to spend time on things that will widen their understanding of Nutrient Management Planning. In addition, there is funding available for businesses to select up to two (per year) animal health and welfare interventions, which include bull fertility, calf respiratory disease, liver fluke (sheep or cattle), roundworm (sheep or cattle), sheep scab, sheep iceberg diseases, and sheep lameness.

Applications are already open for the carbon audit and soil sampling, with funding for the animal health and welfare interventions expected to be available shortly.

Whole-Farm Plans

Whole Farm Plans will be introduced from 2025 as a tool to help farmers and crofters integrate food, climate and biodiversity outcomes on their holdings and inform where they can seek support from the future support framework. The intention of the Whole Farm Plan is to help businesses become more environmentally and economically resilient and sustainable, with productivity baselines for soil testing, an animal health and welfare declaration, carbon audits, biodiversity audits and support for business planning.

To discuss any of this further and what it might mean for your business, please contact a member of the Bell Ingram Rural Land Management team.

Meet the Land Agent

If you have a passion for travel and the countryside then life as a Bell Ingram Land Agent could be for you. We find out more about what the job entails, and routes into the profession from our Ambleside based Senior Associate, Andrew Thompson.

What is your background?

I am not from a farming background and my interest in surveying started back in the 90s doing work experience for a firm of land agents on Speyside. From those early experiences I realised that surveying could offer an opportunity to travel, learn about the built environment, the social/economic history of a people and a place. I preferred the opportunity as I saw it then, to be outside rather than being sat behind a desk.

What qualifications did you need to become a Land Agent?

I spent some time at the Royal Agricultural College at Cirencester but moved into private practice in Oxfordshire and then Dorset before finishing because working appealed more than studying at the time.

Through the experience route (five years of working) I enrolled and passed the Post Graduate Diploma in Surveying from the College of Estate Management in Reading while working full time in Leicestershire. This qualification then enabled me to do the APC (Rural) through the RICS, which I passed first time, whilst working in Inverness.

What’s been your career path?

I spent nearly four years in Dorset working on a traditional 12,500-acre estate which had six miles of world heritage coastline, a castle, holiday caravan park, plus a portfolio of farms, cottages and commercial interests. I then spend a short spell in London on the more commercial side of surveying but although well renumerated it wasn’t for me.

From there, I moved up to Leicestershire for three years undertaking a range of duties and tasks; then to Scotland and spent five years in Inverness working for one of our competitors. Much of that time was spent working for Crown Estate’s marine portfolio at a time where there was a lot of investment in community assets making local fish and shellfish business more sustainable, whilst encouraging tourism; early days of windfarms; the decommissioning redundant North Sea oil and gas assets. I was also involved in some of Scottish Water’s refurbishment projects. My work took me all over Scotland and I was a frequent visitor to Orkney and Shetland.

After that I worked for the National Trust in the Lake District (a National Park and what became a World Heritage Site) for a further five years before returning to private practice at Bell Ingram. My time with the NT was more akin to where I had first started out in the surveying profession down in Dorset where there was a large portfolio of farms and cottages to manage on a day-to-day basis but with a significant emphasis on the environment, the culture, the intrinsic historical context of Beatrix Potter, Wordsworth, Coleridge etc and a big interface with the general public.

What’s the biggest misconception of the job?

If you are considering a career as a Land Agent or Chartered Surveyor, you might not realise that companies like Bell Ingram tender for much of our work through framework contracts with the major utility companies. This kind of work – acquisition and disposals, compensation and claims, compulsory purchase and land referencing – is very different from traditional estate management or forestry but can be extremely rewarding seeing a massive infrastructure project through from start to finish.

My current role, for example, has been focused on a major water project insuring and providing water to the whole of West Cumbria over the past six years, sat alongside other utility and other private client work.

What do you enjoy about the job?

The scope for variety in the context of ‘surveying’ or ‘rural land management’ or alternatively the ability to specialise and be an expert in a specific discipline. One can be progressive and engaging, giving guidance and opinion on how best to manage land and safeguard it as an asset for future generations and as part of that it’s the travelling and the experiences generated in meeting new people that appeals to me. Working in different parts of the country, experiencing different challenges, putting context to them and sympathetically securing a solution for the client. Just because something works once, it doesn’t mean it’ll work elsewhere.

In my current role working on infrastructure projects, though not often acknowledged per sae – I enjoy the problem-solving element of the job, resolving complex issues to the satisfaction of both client and the landowner is often rewarding.

What’s your advice to those thinking of entering the profession?

The traditional route of university degree and masters followed by your APC and CAAV professional qualifications is not the only route into the rural land management sector. For private practices like Bell Ingram, this pathway is still considered the “gold standard”, but there are different expectations within the utility sector with more “on the job” training and development available to those who prefer a non-academic route or for those who wish to transition into the profession. As an example of this I came across was GP doctor who had a personal interest/hobby in rural sports and decided to take up a position whilst maintaining his GP hours.

Bell Ingram is hiring Land Agents across our business and locations. Find out more about the positions available and life at Bell Ingram at bellingram.co.uk/Work-with-us.