Shrewsbury legal specialist completes rural leadership programme
A legal expert at a Shropshire law firm is celebrating after being among the first-ever graduates of a project to inspire future leaders in agriculture.
The Rural Leadership Programme has been launched by the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society (RWAS), and Nicola Davies, of Lanyon Bowdler Solicitors in Shrewsbury, said it was a valuable experience.
“I was very grateful to have been selected to join the RWAS Rural Leadership Programme, which ran from May 2022 until the summer this year,” Nicola said. “As a solicitor specialising in dispute resolution in agricultural matters, the course has given me an excellent insight into the farming industry as a whole.
“We met farmers, visited diversification projects and agricultural businesses, undertook leadership and media training and heard from a number of key people in the farming industry, including Senedd members.
“The course consisted of intensive residential sessions over the past year and it was a thoroughly enjoyable and useful experience.”
The programme was supported by the Glamorgan Feature County 2023 and the legacy of Norman Griffiths, starting with a residential session at the Royal Welsh Showground in September 2022.
The group then attended the Nuffield Farming Conference in Cardiff, before a tour of South Wales and Sussex including visits to farm shops, Knepp Estate and NFU Vice President David Exwood’s farm.
Nicola added: “The final residential session was really interesting, taking in a huge variety of agricultural businesses, including Gloucester Services Farm Shop, and then a tour of The Senedd for discussions with politicians about the challenges being faced by the industry.
“I am proud to be among the first cohort to successfully complete the 2022/23 Rural Leadership Programme and have already tapped into my experience when assisting clients with wide-ranging legal issues.”
