Our Vision
Women in Agriculture Scotland is an important grassroots movement for positive change to empower and increase the confidence of their membership to achieve their aspirations and create a more progressive, successful and inclusive industry
Our Mission
Women in Ag Scotland achieve this by supporting members to build and foster networks within the agricultural industry; by influencing and furthering the progression of women in agriculture to achieve equality of opportunity in the industry on behalf of the membership; by inspiring their members to reach their full potential; and, to develop members personally and professionally through events and training.
Meet The Committee
Every committee member serves a three-year term and
committee members are voted on by the WiAS membership.
CHAIR - CAROLE BRUNTON
My name is Carole Brunton, my husband Ian and I have 3 of a family, Lianne is a Physiotherapist in Edinburgh, Jenny is a Senior European Policy Advisor with the British Agriculture Bureau in Brussels and Ally is at home on the farm.On the farm we have 260 breeding ewes and 300 acres made up of 250 arable and 50 grass & woodland.We also have a 500kw wind turbine on the farm which was erected in 2015. Having been born and raised on a farm, agriculture and the rural industry has always been a huge part of my life. This passion has led to agriculture and education being at the heart of both my professional and personal life.
VICE CHAIR - IONA SMITH
Iona is from a Pedigree Beef and Sheep Farm on the West Coast of Scotland. She graduated in the summer of 2022 with a BA Hons in Rural Business Management and began her professional career with Davidson and Robertson in September 2022 as a Graduate Rural Surveyor. She loves all things agricultural especially cows from relief milking in her spare time to prepping animals for shows and sales. She recently started her own pedigree Shorthorn herd and is excited about expanding and the future of it. She also enjoys the gym, swimming, and young farmers.
SECRETARY - ALIX RITCHIE
Alix farms in Perthshire with husband John and is Health and Education Manager for Quality Meat Scotland (QMS), being passionate about educating the public about where their food comes from. Previously, Alix was a Project Coordinator for Perth and Kinross Royal Highland Education Trust (RHET) and has also worked for Scottish Association of Young Farmers Clubs (SAYFC) as East Regional Coordinator.
CORA COOPER - COMMITTEE MEMBER
Cora is not from an agricultural background and is a first generation land owner. Together with her husband David she owns and runs a 5000 acre hill sheep farm in Ayrshire. They won Farmers Weekly Sheep Farmer of the Year 2023. On the farm they have done over 2000 acres of peatland restoration and focus on regenerative grazing on their LFA land. They have three young children. She has a LLB Hons degree from Glasgow University and experience in PR, events, marketing, renewables and community benefit in rural economies. Cora is a volunteer for RHET Ayrshire & Arran and trustee of a charity providing recreational learning experiences at after school and holiday clubs.
ALANA BLACK - COMMITTEE MEMBER
LUCY MCCYLMONT - COMMITTEE MEMBER
Lucy is from a dairy background and spent her childhood growing up in Dumfries, South-West Scotland. Her passion for the agri-food industry has always remained a priority for Lucy after graduating from Newcastle University in 2019 with a degree in Food Business Managment. She currently works as a Dairy Consultant for Kite Consulting, travelling across Scotland & England working with retailers, processors and farmers. Lucy is a huge advocate for Women in Ag and can’t wait to share her ideas and thoughts with the rest of the committee. In her spare time, she enjoys walking her dog and attending rugby games at Murrayfield!
SANDRA GUTHRIE - COMMITTEE MEMBER
My name is Sandra Guthrie, I am 27 years old and grew up on an arable farm just north of Perth. I am a chartered accountant working for Azets, and I have worked there for the last 10 years. I recently moved to Edinburgh so currently work from the Perth and Edinburgh offices. I joined Azets (previously Campbell Dallas) straight from school where they put me through my exams, and I qualified as a chartered accountant 3 years ago. I work in the rural team, in business advisory services, covering accounts and tax. We have a large rural team in the Perth office and our clients are primarily based in Perthshire, Fife & Kinross.
At home, we have diversified, my mum runs and bed & breakfast, self-catering cottage and we have a wigwam site (glamping). Although not directly involved at home it is very much a family fun business with everyone helping when they can.
PIPPA ROSS - COMMITTEE MEMBER
I live with my partner in the Scottish Borders, just outside Kelso on his family farm. The farm is primarily arable with pedigree Aberdeen angus on the side, a bloodline which has been in the family for over 150 years! I am very keen to get stuck in on the farm where possible and have recently started my own enterprise growing PYO flowers and I hope to expand this into more commercial flower growing. I don’t however work fulltime on the farm; my full-time job is as a Land / Project Manager for a renewable energy Developer Wind2. Wind2 is a small family-owned renewable energy developer covering the whole of the UK. I love my job!!
ELLIE SINCLAIR - COMMITTEE MEMBER
Ellie is the Digestate Manager within her family business Sinclair Agricultural & Recycling Services in Aberdeenshire.
She has a Bachelor of Arts in Media & Business from Robert Gordon’s University, however realised quickly that was not what she wanted to do. She went home to work on the farm in 2016, and from there has gone from strength to strength. She is now studying a Masters in Agriculture Professional Practice through SRUC with the hopes to become a farm consultant.
ALISON ROSS - COMMITTEE MEMBER
My name is Alison Ross and I am a registered nurse and also farm in partnership with my husband and son near Tarland, Aberdeenshire. On the farm, my passion is our sheep flock of 600 ewes, with a specific interest in my small Bluefaced Leicester flock, as well as direct sales of our fresh produce. As a nurse, I work 13 hours a week in a retirement home where 70% of our resistance have dementia. Over the last 10 years, I have taken lambs (in nappies) into the care home for residence as a method of pet therapy. This has been a massive success, especially in covid times when many residents couldn’t see family. Lambs bring the feeling of happiness and warmth, as well as highlighting key childhood memories. This year, I also set up a lambing experience event on the farm where families came to meet the lambs, get an overview of sheep husbandry, view births and feed the pet lambs in the nursery. The event was sold out in 48 hours. My aim is to build on this success and increase the sessions for 2024 to meet demand. In my spare time, I also serve on the board of the Scottish Tenant Farmers Association and have an interest in art.
ALISA SMITH - COMMITTEE MEMBER
I am newly qualified solicitor at Turcan Connell in one of their land and property teams, and have a particular interest in agricultural law. I’ve previously worked with Argyll and Bute council, NFUS and the Scottish Land Court, so I feel as though I have a good grasp of the current legislation and governance structures which affect Scottish agriculture. There’s always plenty to learn, and I’m very happy to get stuck into everything and anything farming!
My background is in dairy farming in Kintyre, and now that I live on the East Coast I have to say I really miss the cows. I still spend plenty of time helping my parents with the milking, feeding calves and driving silage, and I feel like I could be a useful part of the committee. The work that Women in Agriculture Scotland do is absolutely fantastic and I would be honoured to be a part of it.
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Industry Partners
The work conducted by WiAS could not happen without the support of industry partners. A big thank you to our core sponsors Turcan Connell and Johnston Carmichael.
WiAS has drawn together a collective of organisations: The Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland (RHASS), Royal Bank of Scotland, Savills, Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society (SAOS), Scottish Association of Young Farmers (SAYFC) to support women across rural Scotland to:
- Share experiences of land based industries and rural Scotland
- Seek advice, support and skills based learning
- Access networking and peer group support
