Nine gamekeepers presented with Long Service Awards by the NGO

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The NGO Long Service Awards, sponsored by Elanco, are made to gamekeepers who have completed 40 and 50 years of service and are a celebration of their knowledge and loyalty.

At the NGO Awards ceremony last week, nine honours were presented:

40 years of service:

David Nokes

Jeffrey Powell

Steve Carter

John Pickard

Glynn Smith

50 years of service:

Keith Wooldrige

Terry Oscroft

David Barnes

Stewart Lomas

David Nokes

David started his gamekeeping career on the Miserden Estate in the Cotswolds in 1977 before moving to the Dumbleton Estate in North Gloucestershire in 1984, where he remains to this day.

The Estate owner, together with the friends and family syndicate would like to thank David for the more than 40 years of successful shooting seasons they have enjoyed with David at the helm.

Jeffrey Powell

Jeff comes from a long line of gamekeepers, including his father and grandfather, and started his own career in keepering at the age of 17 on the Chillington Estate in Staffordshire.

Jeff has completed 40 years of hard work for three generations of the Giffard family, who nominated him, and who joined him at the awards on the day. They would like to thank him for developing not just the commercial operation, but also for the work he has done on the wildlife habitat.

We received so many commendations for Jeff it would take most of the day to read them out, but Lord Stafford, in particular, wrote to say:

“Gamekeeping is a lonely business, but Jeff is a true countryman who understands the vagaries of a wild shoot as well as a let day; he generates respect from beaters and guns alike and never shows the anxieties which keepers must have on a day’s shooting. Jeff has been instrumental in maintaining the Chillington Estate ethos of creating wildlife habitats to sit alongside a commercial farming operation, and one visit shows you how successful this has been.”

Steve Carter

Steve was unable to join us on the day, but was nominated by his former colleagues at Forestry England for his 40-plus years as a Wildlife Ranger. Clearly Steve was a highly valued member of the Forestry team, passionate about the countryside, supportive to his team in collecting data for their research and was generous with his knowledge, speaking at professional events, meetings of land managers and working closely with schools and children.

Steve is a very worthy recipient of our Long Service Medal which was sent to him.

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Late last year we received an email nominating three keepers, all old friends and all of whom had, during their gamekeeping careers, worked at Broadlands in Hampshire.

All three became friends through the keepers day at Ballinacor Estate in Ireland, which they all attended during their time at Broadlands, and they have remained in touch ever since.

Together they have an impressive 136 years of gamekeeping experience!

John Pickard, Glynn Smith, Keith Wooldridge

John Pickard

John receives his medal for 40 years’ service to gamekeeping starting his career at Broadlands Estate in 1984 before moving to County Wicklow, Ireland 11 years later and spending 8 years at the Glendalough Estate. He then moved on to Ballinacor Estate in 2008 where he remains to this day.

Glynn Smith

Glynn receives his medal for 40 years’ service to gamekeeping. Commencing his career at Kimbridge Estate, Romsey as river keeper and gamekeeper, Glynn moved to Roke Manor as a single-handed keeper, then on to Broadlands and finally Hartham Park where he continues his keepering career.

The third member of this illustrious band, Keith Wooldridge, joined us to receive his 50-year medal for long service in gamekeeping.

Keith started out in 1956 as a keeper in Haverholme Priory in Lincolnshire. In 1959 he left to do his national service, but stayed on in the Royal Artillery 18^th Field Regiment until 1968 during which time he was the gamekeeper on Salisbury Plain. From here he went to Broadlands where he made many friends, before moving to Ireland as Headkeeper at Birr Castle, then Ballinacor Estate where he built up a reputation as one of the best keepers in Ireland.

Although retired, he still goes beating and helps out on the shoot, and we are reliably told he still enjoys the craic at the pub after a day’s shooting.

Terry Oscroft

Terry Oscroft received his LSA for 50-years of service, although in fact, Terry has now seen 55 years active service in gamekeeping.

Terry was unable to join us as he lives overseas, but his medal was received on his behalf by Darren Preece and Mark Rodgers.

Terry was a founding member of the NGO in 1997. His career has seen him move around, not just the UK, but to the Isle of Man and to Spain in pursuit of his gamekeeping.

Our last two medal winners were unable to join us:

David Barnes

is an example of true dedication to one shoot: Moreton Shoot in Dorset. David started at Moreton in January of 1974 and remains there to this day. Although unable to be with us, his medal was presented to him in January by the Lord Lieutenant of Dorset, Angus Campbell.

Stewart Lomas

Our final medal recipient of the 50 year long service award was Stewart Lomas. Unable to join us due to ill-health, Stewart was gamekeeper at Crag for Lord Derby from 1967 – 1977 before moving to Combsmoss grouse moor where he remained until 2017.

Stewart’s impressive 50 years of service is, as with all the Long Service Medal winners, an inspiration to us all.