Farm of the Week: Hands-on landlord of the Middlesmoor Estate who wants to keep his Nidderdale community alive

“Farming up here was viable until the BPS began disappearing, but I’m now sitting on the fence, wondering where it is all going to end up, as the government keep moving the goalposts. I’ve just gone into another 10 years of HLS stewardship. My farm income is currently around one-third livestock, one-third BPS and one-third stewardship.

Middlesmoor Estate runs to 5500 acres and also includes another 2500 acres tenanted from Yorkshire Water around the reservoirs. Stephen’s in-hand farmland is across 1000 acres of which four-fifths is moorland. He farms with his wife Karen and youngest of three sons, Mark.

“Our family has had the estate since 1919, which includes farming tenants, residential tenancies and the pub. My formative years were spent in Cheshire. I took on Northsidehead and another smaller farm here between 1987-89. The outdoor life is what I enjoy. I also enjoy being in control of my own destiny which, due to politics, is now going slightly awry.

“We run a flock of 425 North Country Cheviot breeding ewes, half of which we cross with the Cheviot ram to try to keep a closed flock and the other half go to a Texel tup. We sell lambs we produce as stores. We’ve been Cheviots since after the foot and mouth year of 2001. We weren’t taken out, but I chose to move from the Swaledale and Mule. I was in Mules for 10 years but the gimmer lambs became too labour intensive.

“We also have 20 suckler cows, mainly Limousin and a few Angus-cross with all progeny going as stores to Pateley Bridge livestock market, sold through auctioneer Libby Bell who is doing a great job. The importance of supporting your local auction mart should not be underestimated.

Stephen says he tries to keep his farming straight-forward.

“My system is simple, stores stock and low input, low output. I want livestock here, but the financial reality is that stewardship pays better than producing food. The majority of us are producing stock below the cost of production.

“We scan the sheep in February and lamb mid-April onwards because I’m trying to get production off feeding grass, rather than feeding cake which I don’t think helps your bottom line at all. Cake also makes your sheep a bit softer when you send them back to the moor, although the amount of sheep on the moors has halved in the last 25 years. You have to keep less because of the brown envelope, but I don’t think the sheep are any better for not being put on the moor in winter.

“We normally get one cut of grass to feed the stock, but we need a second cut this year because it was, as one of the farmers here said, a hungry winter and a hungry spring on top of drought last year when our crop was fortunately not that bad.

Stephen has his heart firmly rooted in his community and is very much a hands-on landlord.

“Mark handles about two-thirds of the work on the farm as I concentrate just as much on looking after my tenants. One of my highest priorities is community. I’m what I’d call a fair landlord rather than a greedy one. I live here after all, and I’ve got to get on with everyone haven’t I? I try to get all tenants in for the medium to long term because that’s what makes a community.

“If there’s a problem the tenants come to me rather than going to the agent and I try to keep everything on the straight and narrow. If there’s a problem with a house, window, gutter or electricity and other things I have all the contacts with local professionals, or if I can, I will fix it myself.

“I’m currently doing up another house, labouring, getting materials. I find that if you get the right tradesmen you don’t have to bother with architects, if it’s a relatively easy job. Good builders and tradesmen know what they’re doing.

Stephen is very conscious and passionate about the future of Middlesmoor and the countryside.

“I’m chair of the parish council and also church warden. That’s the kind of community spirit that I like to try and instil in everyone.

“There are three things that can rip the heart out of a community. Lack of shops, school and a pub. Middlesmoor’s shops have all gone, but we are well serviced by shops in Pateley Bridge and Summerbridge, so you don’t have to go too far for stuff; we have a very much under threat primary school; and we still have The Crown in the village.

“We need to make sure we get young people to come and live and work up here. Fortunately, in the last couple of years we’ve had six babies on Middlesmoor and there’s another on its way. That should help with the school’s future.

“Most of my tenant farms have succession plans in place or have already transferred from the older generation to the younger generation, that’s what keeps and encourages young families to stop here. Recently we’ve had a drystone walling lad who moved here because he knew there was a local primary school here. That’s another young family.

Providing aspiring farmers with security of tenure is something that Stephen sees as a two-way street of harmony.

“Most of our farms are now on 15-20 year FBTs, but I’m flexible based on people’s own commitment. This gives security in the medium to long term and also means they look after the estate. We have 40 miles of drystone walls, 12 miles of public rights of way and 28 stone field barns all to be maintained.

“Andrew Hatton who farms at Low Riggs and has Northern Dairy Shorthorns was originally on a 20 year FBT but because he was investing a small fortune into his cheese business I extended his tenancy to his retirement age.

Sporting rights play their part in Middlesmoor Estate, but that has also changed from years ago.

“It’s a balance between sporting interests, estate interests and farming interests,” says Stephen.

“We all know that grouse shooting is under the cosh, but it complements the land and other species such as partridge, lapwing, curlew, golden plover and red kite.

“It’s my younger brother Ben who runs the shoot and he would tell you that our grouse numbers have dropped substantially in recent times. Part of that has been down to milder winters and more grouse diseases, plus the overuse of such as medicated grit that can make worms resistant.

Stephen fears for the future, mainly due to the politics, but his passion for his community and farming remains.

“I do fear for the future. We are not as in control of our own destiny as we used to be due to the politics. We also have more extreme weather conditions. It’s either feast or famine.