The fifth-generation farming family in Yorkshire being forced to diversify

Alan Coates and sons Steven and Gary will still be showing their well-regarded Swaledale sheep; the family will still be stewarding in many capacities, but back at Aygill Farm the family farming partnership of Alan, wife Pat and son Steven has ventured into new territories with Texdale sheep alongside their Swaledale flock, and a burrow, the Swaledale Burrow, a unique holiday let, as well as rearing a handful of beef cattle which go to Leyburn at about a year old.

“We have 330 acres of in-bye, and sheep rights on Angram Common,” says Alan. “We have 360 breeding ewes of which 130 are commercial Texdales.

"We’ve diversified on to crossbreeding with Texdales because Swaledales seem to cost more to fatten. We’ve cut down in numbers partly because of that cost and because we maybe had more sheep than we needed.”

While they have less Swaledale sheep Alan and Steven have lost none of their prowess around Muker Show’s pens where last year they won three trophies.

“We go back five generations, starting as the Fawcett family in the 1800s until 1930 when my granddad Thomas Fawcett Coates took over from his uncle John Alderson Fawcett,” says Alan. “My dad John Fawcett Coates then took it on. It was my generation that saw the Fawcett name dropped.

“We’ve always had Swaledales but my granddad rented-off the Moors sheep rights between 1940-1972 and that meant we had less. When we took the Fell sheep rights back we increased the numbers and had continued until fairly recently, but in the last ten years we’ve cut them down.”

Pat, whose grandfather Henry Sowerby was a Swaledale sheep man, says the family’s Swaledale prowess grew through Alan and his brother Eric, who sadly passed away in February this year.

“Eric was very keen and many will know him in the Swaledale breed. Between them they were quite successful. Eric was part-time with us and did the school taxi run. He spent many hours here dressing sheep, helping clip, helping Alan and was heavily involved.

“Eric had just a handful of sheep and ran them amongst ours,” says Alan. “He did very well at shows and tup sales at Kirkby Stephen and Hawes, better than we did at the sales on more than one occasion.”

Alan and Steven are intending to go to the annual tup sales at Hawes and Kirkby Stephen, but Alan says numbers are not quite as they were a few years ago.

“There isn’t as much demand for Swaledale tups. Due to diversification and different farming policies there has been a knock back on numbers of Swaledales.

“At the minute we might have about five going,” says Steven. “It’s not every year you have something decent. Last year we took three and did alright.

“We have 200 we keep as pure Swaledales. We now put a Texel tup on the Swaledale ewe, from the gimmers of that we make a Texdale. We now have 130 Texdale ewes.

“Swaledale wethers are sold through Hawes and throughout the year when Swaledale lambs are ready with 120 wether lambs going through Hawes during winter. We also have 120-130 going through as stores off the Texdale ewes.”

In addition to the family farming partnership Pat and Alan’s other son Gary also has Swaledale sheep and will also be showing at Muker.

“Dales farms like ours are not big enough to facilitate lots of family,” says Pat. “Gary went away to qualify as a civil engineer, but still comes back to the farm. He only lives at Catterick Village. Gary has 30 ewes and breeds tups as well.”

It is Gary’s career as a civil engineer that Pat says brought about Swaledale Burrow, and his wife Bev now helps Pat with its publicity.

“It was through Gary’s working environment that he said to do something different. It was his idea of the pod which is now called Swaledale Burrow, which we opened as unique holiday accommodation.

“Gary came up with it two years ago and we started trading at the end of June last year. It’s gone very well and seems to sell itself because it’s different. There are lots of holiday lets in the dale and this was economically a better investment for us because it would have cost an awful lot to renovate a building.

“Yorkshire Dales National Park were involved and quite happy because it is very sustainable, utilises all green energy, and it is not a blot on landscape as it is very camouflaged. It’s a burrow after all!

“Also, thirteen years ago we turned a dilapidated little old cottage on the end of the main farmhouse into a high standard one bedroomed holiday let. Both accommodations are going well.”

Wednesday’s 117th Muker Show will once again see the Coates family on the showground. Alan will be stewarding the sheep classes as he has for nearly 45 years, as well as showing; Steven will also be stewarding, showing and is vice chairman of the show committee; Gary will be showing; and Becky, Steven’s wife will be stewarding.

“It’s a real family affair,” says Pat. “In the early 90s when I married Alan, I was asked to steward and was handicraft steward for a lot of years. I was assistant show secretary to Kathy Scott for six years after long-term secretary Margaret Rutter retired and only recently come off the committee this last year. Becky has now gone on and she stewards while I now look after their little boy Zander. Bev and Gary’s little boy Callum will be starting school.

“Becky and Bev are both involved with the farm business. Becky helps with the holiday lets; Bev does website design, social media, photography and graphic design for the accommodation.

Alan says the Fawbert & Noble Cup, the overall championship trophy to be won at Muker Show has come their way just twice previously.

“The first time was in 2002, the year after Foot & Mouth Disease when there were only a limited number allowed because of movement restrictions, so it was like a local show; but we went on to win in 2012 and that gave us more credibility, as it was a bigger show, open to all.”

Quite incredibly, and a tribute to the longevity of the breed, the winner that day in 2012 is still alive and breeding today, twelve years on.

“If you’ve never been to Muker Show, it may well be a local show, but for Swaledale sheep men and women it is the equivalent of any major sporting final you will ever see! Some things might change, but this doesn’t!”