Alex Butler Senior Farm Environment Adviser Expand Alex works from the Dorchester office and much of his spring and summer is spent helping farming clients apply for the Countryside Stewardship scheme. Other work includes organising training events on conserving farmland wildlife and managing both arable and grassland habitats.
Clare Buckerfield Senior Farm Environment Adviser Expand Clare has been a FWAG Adviser in Dorset for 20 years. She has a lot of experience preparing agri-environment scheme applications and helping farmers implement agreements. With a keen interest in chalk downland, she can advise on the management, restoration and creation of chalk grassland and other grassland habitats. Clare currently facilitates the Cranborne Chase Farmer Cluster, co-ordinates the Long Bredy Farmer Group, and provides land management advice to farmers for the Devils Brook Multi-Benefits Project, Piddle Valley NFM project, and the South Dorset Grasslands Facilitation Fund Cluster.
Neve Bray Assistant Farm Environment Adviser Expand Neve joined FWAG SW in 2021, having graduated from Plymouth with an MSc in Land and Ecological Restoration. She has farming and conservation background, volunteering with private landowners and several charities, and is particularly interested in wetland restoration and British vertebrates. Neve assists the Dorset team with GIS mapping, Countryside Stewardship applications and is involved with several other projects across Dorset, including the Stour Headwaters and Piddle Valley. She also assists landowners to secure funding for environmental projects on their land.
Nicola Hopkins Senior Farm Environment Adviser and Dorset Team Leader Expand Nicola has worked in land management in Dorset for 15 years. Nicola has practical experience of the management of many semi-natural habitats through working as a reserve manager on Dorset’s National Nature Reserves, as well as a background in providing farmers with advice on agri-environment schemes and Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Nicola has worked in partnership with a number of the organisations delivering projects to improve the environment in Dorset and Wiltshire, and acts as Team Leader for advisers in Dorset.
Peter Shipton Senior Farm Environment Adviser Expand Peter has recently joined FWAG SW and is currently working on Natural Flood Management projects in the Somerset Frome catchment and in Dorset, as well as providing a range of advice on farm infrastructure development, soil husbandry and farm regulatory compliance. He has a practical agricultural background and has provided farm advice for many years specialising in farm infrastructure, soil management, livestock and forage systems and farm business management. Peter has a degree in Agricultural Economics from Aberystwyth University and an Engineering Doctorate in Soil Mechanics from Cranfield University.
Tim Bowden Farm Environment Adviser Expand Tim has over 35 years of experience in agricultural production and farm business advice and now specializes in providing agronomic advice to improve farm sustainability. He is FACTS qualified and has an MSc in Sustainable and Efficient Food Production from Grassland Systems. When not at work Tim can be found looking after his own grazing livestock or racing his sailing dinghy.