The Blenheim Estate – the ancestral home of Winston Churchill - is marking national apprenticeship week by highlighting the work of its new shepherdess.
Ellie Young began her stockperson level two apprenticeship and training to be a shepherdess in September on the 12,000-acre Oxfordshire estate.
She is getting ready for her first lambing season working alongside Blenheim’s farm manager, Charles Gerring and full-time shepherd, Tom Locke.
The estate is home to a 1,000-strong flock of Scotch Mule sheep, reared entirely on grass within the estate’s walls, keeping them as naturally healthy as possible.
Ellie’s 18-month apprenticeship has also given her the opportunity to train up her own sheepdog puppy, Buddy.
Monday marked the start of the national apprenticeship week 2022, celebrating the positive impact apprenticeships bring to employers and individuals.
The week aims to promote the benefits of apprenticeships, while spotlighting businesses which are investing in this education route, like Blenheim.
Over 40% more people started apprenticeships in the first quarter of 2021/22 than in the same period 2020/21, which is up again from pre-pandemic levels in 2019.
Ahead of lambing season, which is set to get under way in April at the Blenheim Estate, Ellie revealed her eagerness to get started.
“I am really looking forward to lambing and I am so excited for the season to get started, I really enjoy the daily care of the sheep.
“I am absolutely loving it here so far, the guys are really nice and I am constantly learning so much.
“My puppy, Buddy, is learning quickly but he is still a bit excitable. He loves sheep and people and by the end of my apprenticeship, I want him to be fully-trained.”
Blenheim Estate, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, means Ellie also has to get used to interacting with tourists and visitors.
“The whole experience is absolutely amazing, I never thought I would ever be doing this. I always wanted to work on a farm but I never thought it would be here, the surroundings are beautiful."
Her day-to-day roles include checking on the sheep and helping Tom and Charles in their daily duties.
“Ellie is getting on brilliantly, I can’t fault her at all really, she arrived with very little experience but is a quick learner and is very good,” said head shepherd Tom.
Launched at the end of 2017, Blenheim’s apprenticeship scheme aims to train 100 apprentices within a decade.
By the end of last year, and despite the pandemic, 50 apprentices had already either completed, or are currently completing their courses.
The estate currently has trained 11 apprentices since the scheme launched with five currently in place within farming, gardens and forestry.
