Regional groups across the UK and Ireland

Facilitators and Contact Details

Our regional groups are spreading right across the UK with more to come and Ireland now has its own group. If you'd like to join your local group or you're interested to find out more, email the facilitator directly or contact us on info@pastureforlife.org.

 

Rebecca Mayhew - East Anglia

eastanglia@pastureforlife.org

Rebecca farms with her husband Stuart and two children, Isobel and Jack in South Norfolk, where they’ve transitioned from conventional arable and pig enterprises to a regenerative, pasture-fed 60 head Jersey cows for dairy, keeping calves and cows together, a suckler herd, sheep, pigs, goats and laying hens. They also have a farm shop, cafe, butchery and vineyard.

Holistic Management training in 2020 has provided them with an invaluable framework for healing the farm, and helping run to run a diverse business, whilst engaging with other farmers, the public and local schools about climate change, farming practices and nutrient dense food.

Why Rebecca joined Pasture for Life here.

Tracy Vaughan - Northern Marches

Tracy Vaughan

northernmarches@pastureforlife.org

Tracy grew up in a Staffordshire farming family and has been managing the holding for beef production since 2007. A growing interest in biodiversity and food quality led to the establishment of the small “Riddings” herd of pedigree Red Poll cattle in 2014 to explore and demonstrate the environmental benefits of low input grazing systems whilst supporting native breeds to produce nutrient dense grass fed beef. This approach has improved animal and soil health, something Tracy is always looking to share knowledge and experiences with others to  advance agroecological practices and is excited about the contribution of the PFL in this paradigm shift.

Hannah Thorogood - East Midlands

eastmidlands@pastureforlife.org

Hannah has worked on a variety of livestock farms throughout her life and studied MSc Organic Farming at SAC. Over the last 12 years she has been developing her home farm The Inkpot. From an 18 acre depleted compacted arable field to an abundant thriving organic permaculture demonstration farm, using regenerative farming techniques such as mob grazing. With rented land the farm is now 100 acres, supplying award winning produce direct to customers and some meat box schemes. Hannah farms with her twin 15 year-old daughters, who are equal decision makers on the farm.

Why Hannah joined Pasture for Life here.

Sinéad Moran - Ireland

Sinéad Moran

Matt Elliott - Cotswolds

Matt Elliott

cotswolds@pastureforlife.org

Matt and his wife Laura mob graze certified Pasture for Life beef cattle on 110 acres of National Trust land at Sandy Hill Farm, Gloucestershire. He has been a member of the PFLA since 2016 and is looking forward to helping introduce new members to the PFLA to access this knowledge base and to enable more farmers to transition towards a sustainable future.

Why Matt joined Pasture for Life here.

Nikki Yoxall - Scotland

Nikki Yoxall

scotland@pastureforlife.org

Nikki Yoxall nikki@pfla.org.uk: Nikki is a farmer and educator based in the Scottish Highlands. In addition to her work as Regional Facilitator, Nikki is also the PFLA Research Coordinator, connecting academics and farmers in pursuit of practical, agroecological solutions to current challenges in the sector. Instagram: @howemill

Clem Sandison - Scotland

Clem Sandison

clem@pfla.org

Clem is a facilitator, food activist, filmmaker and community organiser based in Glasgow. She’s been facilitating the Mob Grazing Scotland group for the Soil Association for the last 3 years, alongside running farmer-led research projects and agroforestry events. Instagram: @la_jardinera

Why Clem joined Pasture for Life here.

Cat Frampton - Southwest

Cat Frampton

southwest@pastureforlife.org

Cat Frampton farms a small, rough hill farm on the east side of Dartmoor, with her husband Paul and sister Rose. They have a certified Organic Pasture for Life beef suckler herd along with a flock of Hebridean sheep. Cat joined Pastures for Life in 2016 when she was looking for ways to cut costs on her farm and improve her animals' health. Through advice from the forum and during events she has turned her farm from a fairly conventional struggling hill farm, with high input costs and slowly degrading soil and biodiversity, into one that is cheaper to run, healthier ecologically and which produces some of the best meat possible. She is also an artist who’s work is based mostly on the birds seen on her farm. Instagram: @catframpton Twitter: cat_frampton

Why Cat joined Pasture for Life here.

Emma Douglas - Wales

Emma Douglas

emma@pastureforlife.org

Emma has been facilitating grazing across South Wales for PONT Cymru since 2012 and is currently involved with managing meadows on the Gower through supporting the Gower Meadows Group. She undertakes conservation grazing with her own Dexter cattle and ponies and runs a successful small business ‘Gower Meadow Beef’. Instagram:@gowermeadowbeef

Why Emma joined Pasture for Life here.

Jenna Thompson - Wales

jenna@pastureforlife.org

Jenna developed a passion for farming as a child helping in a friend’s lambing shed, and since then gained a degree and master’s degree in Agricultural Animal Science and worked for companies such as Innovis Breeding Sheep, Farm Assured Welsh Livestock, Welsh Water and DEFRA. Jenna has also previously owned a sheep scanning business and spent a year working at North Wyke Farm Platform.

Why Jenna joined Pasture for Life here.

Ruth Dalton - Cumbria

Ruth Dalton

northwest@pastureforlife.org

Ruth is a farm advisor and consultant specialising in native breeds and nature friendly land management. She works for several different organisations on a self-employed basis.   Ruth is based near Kendal where she and her partner breed pedigree native cattle and sheep, grazing to achieve nature conservation objectives for a number of local landowners as well as on the home farm. Instagram: @whinpotfarmruth

Why Ruth joined Pasture for Life here.

Pen Rashbass - Peak District

peakdistrict@pastureforlife.org

Pen is a Hebridean sheep breeder, conservation grazier and grazing advisor based in Derbyshire. She is a member of the PFLA research group and also sits on two Defra Scientific Advisory Committees – the Animal Welfare Committee and the Farm Animal Genetic Resources Committee.

Ruth Pullan - Severn & Wye

Ruth Pullan

severnwye@pastureforlife.org

Originally from Yorkshire, over the past few years Ruth has volunteered and worked on farms and smallholdings all over the UK. She has a particular interest in how resilient, local food systems can be created and maintained as well as extending this idea to the clothes we wear and things we buy and the vibrant and healthy culture which inevitably grows up around this. From 2017 to 2019 she ran a small festival in the Yorkshire Dales which sought to promote the beautiful but endangered socio-ecological systems surrounding upland hay meadows. When not working in food and farming she is a leatherworker and craftswoman, specialising in hand stitched leatherwork as well as teaching the craft to adults all over the UK.

Why Ruth joined Pasture for Life here.

Kate Scott - Wessex

Kate Scott

wessex@pastureforlife.org

Originally from Dorset Kate now runs a small flock of pasture fed Poll Dorset sheep on the 500 acre farm her husband John manages in West Sussex. Passionate about the benefits of a pasture fed system for ruminant, soil and human health and for biodiversity above and below ground, her special interest is in diverse herbal leys and meadow restoration. Kate farmed in Wales for some years alongside her husband supplying local restaurants with beef, lamb and pork and then went on to study herbal medicine at UEL, finding her knowledge of plant chemicals in native British plants transferred well to the field. She also runs a small agricultural consultancy with John, alongside her own farm diversification business using milk and wool from her sheep.
Instagram: @thedroversdaughter

Mark Palmer - North East

northeast@pastureforlife.org

Mark has been involved in organic and sustainable farming for over 20 years, prior to that was managing a large estate farm in North Yorkshire.  For the last seven years, he has been an inspector, from field to fork, for the Soil Association, including completing PFLA inspections, which has allowed him to meet some really inspiring farmers. Outside of PFLA work, he is developing Fibreshed North Yorkshire, and developing a flax for fibre and dye plant growing project, with others in North Yorkshire. When "not working", he helps out on his partner's organic dairy and cereal family farm on the edge of the North York Moors, near Kirkbymoorside

Supply Chain Team

The Pasture for Life Supply Chain team is hard at work connecting the dots in the wider pasture-fed supply chain. They help to link store farms with finishing farms, and certified farms with butchers, wholesalers, restaurants, and other retailers, helping them relay the benefits pasture-fed farming has for people, animals, and the environment to consumers. If you are a farmer who has a supply chain enquiry, or a retailer looking to source pasture-fed produce in your area, get in touch with one of our Supply Chain Officers:

Nigel Franklin - Supply Chain South

Nigel Franklin

nigel@pastureforlife.org

Nigel has been farming at Brightleigh Farm in Outwood Surrey with his wife Penny for the last 3 years, and for the past year has been Regional Facilitator for the Southeast PFLA group. He and Penny have a herd of Black Baldies, along with some pigs & chickens, which they sell direct through their farm shop. Previously, Nigel worked in the Event & Exhibition Branding industry and spent 4 years working for Race horse trainer Guy Harwood.

Rob Bunn - Supply Chain North

Rob Bunn and Max

rob@pastureforlife.org

Originally from Worcestershire, where his family keep an Angus X Hereford suckler herd and Easy- Care sheep flock, Rob joins the PFLA team as Supply Chain Manager for the North and Scotland. Passionate about ruminant livestock production, Rob lives in York so ideally located for working closely with all PFLA members, throughout the organisation, in the North of England and Scotland. Previous roles include co-managing the procurement and supply chains of livestock for Beef, Veal and Venison Processor, Dovecote Park. Knowledge Exchange Manager for English Levy Board, AHDB and most recently, Business Development Manager for the Agri-tech Centre; CIEL (Centre for Innovation Excellence in Livestock). Alongside his role at the PFLA, Rob works for The Country Trust as a Farm Discovery Coordinator

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