2025 Winners
The winners of the very first Schöffel Countryside Awards, run in partnership with the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT), were crowned at a ceremony hosted by Coutts Landed Estates in London on Monday 3 November 2025.
The awards, which set out to shine a light on those who are going above and beyond for wildlife and the natural environment – farmers, land managers, and conservationists whose passion, innovation and dedication are shaping the future of the British countryside – launched in January 2025 and attracted more than 80 nominations across the UK.
Twenty-four finalists were then shortlisted in six categories. Throughout the summer, a panel of judges – including GWCT ecologists and advisors, and external experts in relevant fields such as ‘Cheerful Charlie’ Ireland of Clarkson’s Farm and Jake Fiennes of Holkham Estate – visited the finalists to see their conservation work in action. Following lengthy deliberations, the judges selected the below winners.
Award Category
Description
Shortlist
Category Winner
The Nature-Friendly Farm/Estate Award
To celebrate farms and estates that have excelled in implementing practices that promote biodiversity and species recovery.
- Nedging Hall Estate, Suffolk
- Courteenhall Farms, Northamptonshire
- Cruglas Farm, Ceredigion
- Gordon Castle Estate Co Ltd, Moray
- J & J Beary Farming Ltd, Cumbria
- Vine House Farm, Lincolnshire
- Ragley Estate, Warwickshire
- EJ Barker & Sons, Suffolk
Cruglas Farm, Ceredigion
The Innovation in Conservation Award
To champion individuals or groups who have developed innovative solutions, technologies or methods that advance agriculture and the natural environment.
- Grazing Management Ltd, Gloucestershire
- Geoff Eyre, Abney Moor, Derbyshire
Geoff Eyre, Abney Moor, Derbyshire
The Farm-Environment Partnership Award
To recognise farms that have formed successful partnerships with others, showcasing the positive outcomes of collaboration.
- The Central Chilterns Farmer Cluster, Buckinghamshire
- Wellshead Estate & Wellshead Natural Capital, Somerset
- Wiston Estate, Sussex
Wiston Estate, Sussex
The Wetland & Watercourse Conservation Award
To showcase efforts and achievements in creating and restoring wetland habitats and watercourses to the benefit of biodiversity and ecosystem services.
- Norton Marshes, Raveningham Estate, Norfolk
- Shenton Estate, Warwickshire
- Bisterne Estate, Hampshire
Bisterne Estate, Hampshire
The Rising Star Award
To shine a light on a young individual who is setting a sterling example and demonstrating an outstanding approach to conservation in the British countryside.
- Emily Graham, County Durham
- Rosie Morton, Edinburgh
- Thomas Hilder, Hampshire
- Timothy Smith, Kent
Thomas Hilder, Hampshire
The Working Conservationist Award
To celebrate an individual who has dedicated much of their life to the conservation of flora and fauna in the British countryside.
- John Hitchcock, South Yorkshire
- Rupert Brewer – Bisterne Estate, Ringwood
- Graham Denny – Brewery Farm, Suffolk
- James Allsop – Monk Wood Shoot, Derbyshire
Rupert Brewer – Bisterne Estate, Hampshire
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