Castletown Estate and Farm have been announced as one of the 28 finalists for the Schöffel Countryside Awards.

The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) and country clothing brand Schöffel Country are thrilled to announce the 28 finalists for the 2026 awards.

A celebration of private land managers, farms and partnerships whose dedication to wildlife management and conservation is helping to improve the health of the British countryside, the awards are returning for a second year following the success of last year’s inaugural event.

The Schöffel Countryside Awards celebrate those delivering working conservation – practical, on-the-ground action that proves wildlife recovery and food production can go hand in hand.  

More than 70 nominations were received from which 28 finalists have been shortlisted across six categories.

These countryside heroes include individuals, farms and estates from across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. 

The ceremony will again be hosted by Coutts Landed Estates in London in November. 

Megan Lock, judge and senior farm environment advisor for GWCT, says: “Following on from the successful launch of the Schöffel Countryside Awards, in partnership with GWCT, in 2025, I am excited to act as a judge again. 

“I am looking forward to meeting these finalists, who have all been nominated for delivering huge benefits for wildlife on private land, both independently and collaboratively; to hear of innovations in conservation; meet young passionate rising stars and to hear about the fantastic work that has been done to improve wetlands and water courses.

“So much work like this goes under the radar and these awards showcase those who are quietly striving to make nature thrive.” 

Cultural importance of the British rural landscape 

Adrian Thornton-Berry, farmer from North Yorkshire and founding member of Swaledale and Wensleydale Environmental Farmers Group (SWEF), which has been shortlisted in the Farm-Environment Partnership category, says: “I was genuinely surprised and very proud to learn that SWEF had been nominated for the Schöffel Countryside Awards.  

“Supporting SWEF is something I care passionately about because it represents the living heritage of the Yorkshire Dales, from native sheep breeds and traditional farming on the hills and in the valleys, to the iconic dry stone walls that help make these landscapes such important havens for wildlife and biodiversity. 

“By seeking other funding for upland farming families who are threatened following removal of government support, SWEF aims to conserve the generational knowledge essential to enhance biodiversity and ensure these managed landscapes remain productive, environmentally resilient and culturally significant for the future.” 

The 2026 judging panel has been boosted by two of the winners from the inaugural 2025 Schöffel Countryside Awards – Rupert Brewer, game and wildlife manager of the Bisterne estate, who won the Working Conservationist category and the Wetland and Watercourse category with his team, and Tom Hilder, senior nature-based solutions officer for the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, who won the Rising Star category.

Also joining the panel of judges this year are Paul Coulson, Alison Baker and Richard Negus.

The judges, who are made up of GWCT ecologists and advisors and external experts in relevant fields, will visit each finalist to see their conservation work in action before the full panel cast their votes later this year. 

Finalists in each award category:

The Nature-Friendly Farm/Estate Award – sponsored by Oakbank

This category celebrates farms, tenant farms or estates that have excelled in implementing practices that promote biodiversity and species recovery.

• Wyken Estate, Suffolk 
• Godminster Farm, Somerset
• EJ Barker & Sons, Suffolk
• Boughton Estate, Northamptonshire
• Bulwick Estates, Northamptonshire
• Llwyn Y Brain Farm, Powys, Wales 
• Castletown Estate and Farm, Cumbria
• Racecourse Farm, Staffordshire
• Rottal Estate, Angus, Scotland
• The Grange and Moat Farm, Northamptonshire 

The Innovation in Conservation Award – sponsored by B-hive Innovations

This category champions individuals or groups who have developed innovative solutions, technologies or methods that advance conservation and the natural environment.

• John Chantry – Project Laxford and Watershed Connections, Perthshire, Scotland
• Stuart Evans, North Yorkshire
• Siva Sunder Subramanian, Gloucestershire
• Ben Harrower – BH Wildlife Consultancy, Edinburgh 

The Farm-Environment Partnership Award 

This category recognises farms that have formed successful partnerships with others, showcasing the positive outcomes of collaboration.

• Swaledale and Wensleydale Environmental Farmers (SWEF) group, North Yorkshire
• Manhood Peninsular Farmers Cluster Group, West Sussex
• Llwyn Y Brain Farm, Powys, Wales  

The Wetland & Watercourse Conservation Award – sponsored by The Atlantic Salmon Trust

This category focuses on efforts and achievements in creating and restoring wetland habitats and watercourses to the benefit of biodiversity and ecosystems.

• Lough Erne Wildfowlers’ Council Breeding Wader Project, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland
• River Stiffkey, Norfolk
• George Cornelius, Northamptonshire
• Coggeshall Hall Farm, Essex 

The Rising Star Award – sponsored by Pressendye

This category shines a light on young individuals who are demonstrating an outstanding approach to conservation.

• Tom Ewin, Suffolk/Norfolk border
• Maaike Vrancken, Edinburgh, Scotland
• George Larcombe, Dorset
• George Parish, Shropshire 

The Working Conservationist Award

This category celebrates an individual who has dedicated much of their life to the conservation of flora and fauna in the British countryside.

• David Allison, Grosvenor Reay Forest Estate, Sutherland, Scotland
• Patrick Barker, Westhorpe, Suffolk
• Graham Denny – Brewery Farm, Suffolk
• James Allsop – Barlow, Derbyshire