15 minutes with...

15 Minutes With: Sarah Dunning — Westmorland Family Businesses CLA President Gavin Lane sits down with Sarah Dunning, Chair of Westmorland Limited, the family behind the award-winning Tebay Motorway Services and Gloucester Gateway. Sarah shares how she left London in her late twenties to join the family business, navigated a pivotal generational transition when their long-standing partners retired, and took on the challenge of building Gloucester Services — a new site 200 miles from home with...

CLA Deputy President Joe Evans sits down with James Fielden, founder of Jamie's Farm, to explore how working farms are transforming the lives of disadvantaged young people across the UK. In just 16 years, Jamie's Farm has grown from a pilot project to a national charity operating seven farms, employing nearly 100 people, and impacting almost 20,000 children. Jamie shares the remarkable story of Jack—a boy who came to the farm through foster care and eventually became their first employee wh...

In this episode, CLA President Gavin Lane speaks with Alan Laidlaw, England's first Commissioner for the Tenant Farming Sector. Alan discusses his newly created role, which emerged from the Rock Review, and shares insights into promoting best practices and addressing challenges in tenant farming relationships. Key topics include: • The Commissioner's role and day-to-day responsibilities • Economic pressures facing broad acre and dairy farmers • The importance of landlord-tenant collaboration ...

How can siblings work together to run a successful rural enterprise? Kenton Hall Estate in Suffolk is truly a family affair, with siblings Tom McVeigh, Lucy McVeigh and Emily Aitchison at the heart of the estate's diversified businesses. On top of the 450-acre arable farm's exploration into hazelnuts and walnuts, the estate is home to a variety of diversifications, including a wedding venue, glamping site, hen party packages, cookery school, Duke of Edinburgh scheme residential courses ...

Open Farm Sunday: 20 Years of Reconnecting Britain with Farming Join us for a special conversation with Ian Pigott, founder of Open Farm Sunday, as we celebrate two decades of this transformative initiative. Since 2006, Open Farm Sunday has welcomed 3.2 million children onto British farms, bridging the gap between urban communities and agricultural life. In this episode, Ian shares: The inspiration behind Open Farm Sunday and its Danish rootsPowerful stories of children transformed by farm ex...

CLA Land Use Chief Susan Twining sits down with Baroness Minette Batters to discuss her groundbreaking Farming Profitability Review and life in the House of Lords. Minette shares insights on the disconnect between rural and urban Britain, why agriculture's true economic value is vastly underestimated, and her vision for a partnership approach between government and the farming industry. From the challenges of influencing legislation to the exciting opportunities for UK agriculture to lead t...

CLA President Gavin Lane sits down with Julia Aglionby, Director of the Foundation for Common Land, to discuss the critical challenges facing England's upland farmers. Julia shares insights from 25+ years of living and farming in the Eden Valley, exploring why government policy struggles to support these vital landscapes. Topics include funding shortfalls in environmental schemes, the invisible contributions of upland communities, balancing conservation with food production, and managing the ...

15 Minutes With: Abi Kay, Deputy Editor of Farmer's Weekly Join Jonathan Roberts as he sits down with Abi Kay to discuss the fractured relationship between politics and farming in the UK. From inheritance tax controversies to broken promises on food security, Abi shares her insights on why 40% of farmers are now planning to vote for Reform UK. Plus, she reveals the stories behind her most impactful investigations—including exposing a major meat fraud scandal and tackling difficult conversatio...

In this edition of 15 Minutes With, CLA Deputy President Joe Evans and Vice President Eliza Ecclestone tackle one of the most challenging questions facing rural Britain: what does it really mean to be a landowner today? Joe and Eliza explore the disconnect between public perception and the reality of modern land ownership, discussing why the term "landowner" itself might be a barrier to understanding the vital role rural estates play in the economy and wider society. From managing diverse ent...

In this episode of 15 Minutes With from the Country Land and Business Association, host Jonathan Roberts sits down with Labour's former farming minister Daniel Zeichner to reflect on his time in office. Zeichner offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at reshuffle day, discusses the challenges of cross-departmental collaboration in government, and addresses Labour's relationship with rural communities. The conversation tackles the controversial inheritance tax changes head-on, with Zeichner defe...

In this inaugural episode, host Jonathan Roberts sits down with CLA President Gavin Lane to discuss the government's controversial inheritance tax changes and their impact on farming families and rural businesses. Gavin shares his experience running a farm in West Norfolk, explains why the recent policy U-turn still falls short, and reveals the challenges of getting Whitehall to understand the countryside. From succession planning to economic growth, this conversation explores what's at stake...

In this episode, host Jonathan Roberts sits down with Labour's former farming minister Daniel Zeichner to discuss his time in office, the challenges of governing, and the controversial inheritance tax changes affecting farmers and rural businesses. Zeichner offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at reshuffle day, the difficulties of cross-departmental collaboration in government, and Labour's relationship with the countryside. The conversation tackles the heated inheritance tax debate hea...

Welcome to the first episode of "15 Minutes With..." from the Country Land and Business Association. Host Jonathan Roberts speaks with CLA President Gavin Lane about the critical issues facing British farming and rural business today. In this episode, Gavin discusses: • The current crisis in arable farming and plummeting commodity prices • Why inheritance tax changes are casting a shadow over the sector • The confidence crisis in agricultural policy and the Sustainable Farming Incentive • Foo...