Livestock Manager

Livestock Manager
Reporting to Farm Manager
Nature Permanent
Hours Full Time
Location Sandringham Estate

The Estate is the country retreat of His Majesty the King and consists of 8,279 hectares of which 2,700 hectares are farmed in hand.

The farming operation is a critical part of the Estate, and its primary objective is to farm organically in hand with nature. This means that whilst we have a clear purpose to produce sustainably grown food, we place the same importance on the management of habitats for the benefit of biodiversity.

The farms operation has been farmed organically since 2019. It is a mixed farm that currently consists of four key elements:

• Currently 2,400 ha of organic arable rotation, including fertility building herbal leys, cover crops, wheat, barley, rye, oats, peas.
• 200 ha of permanent pasture.
• Organic livestock:
  • 1,000 breeding ewes (Aberfield).
  • A commercial suckler herd of pedigree Beef Shorthorns.
  • Small non-commercial herds of Longhorns and British White cattle have been introduced for conservation grazing.
• Extensive stewardship programmes across the in-hand farm.

The current 1000 strong Aberfield mule flock is self-replacing and produces finished lamb for a premium supermarket retailer. There is a strong emphasis on maternal, easy lambing genetics, and the use of technology to assist where appropriate. Ewes are lambed outdoors, and lambs are finished on a forage-only diet.

A herd of pedigree Beef shorthorn-based sucklers was established in 2021, with the aim of calving up to 100 cows within the next 3 years. The herd is over wintered in a new building with modern handling facilities, with an emphasis on safety and ease of operation. Currently all progeny is finished on-farm with 100% homegrown forage.

The Senior Livestock Operations Manager holds strategic responsibility for the planning, performance, and continuous improvement of all livestock enterprises across the Estate. Working in close partnership with the Farm Manager, this role sets the long-term vision and annual targets for breeding, rearing, and finishing operations, ensuring alignment with the Estate’s commercial, environmental, and welfare objectives.

This leadership role involves the design and oversight of integrated livestock strategies, including advanced grazing systems, genetic improvement programmes, and financial planning to drive productivity and sustainability. The Senior Livestock Operations Manager leads the development and implementation of robust operational frameworks, ensuring excellence in animal welfare, biosecurity, and compliance with all regulatory and assurance standards.

Accountable for the performance of the livestock team, this role provides strategic direction, coaching, and performance management to ensure high standards are consistently met. The postholder will oversee data integrity and reporting across all livestock records, ensuring readiness for audits and contributing to enterprise-wide decision-making.

As a key member of the farm’s senior leadership team, the Senior Livestock Operations Manager collaborates across departments, represents the Estate in external partnerships, and plays a pivotal role in shaping the future of its livestock enterprises.

The Estate’s Plan on a Page is attached, which records some key information including our core values.

The following is intended to provide guidance as to duties but is not exhaustive. You will from time to time be required to undertake other activities of a similar nature that fall within your capabilities. Specific duties will include:

• Lead the operational management of the Estate’s cattle and sheep enterprises, ensuring delivery against annual business objectives and long-term sustainability goals. Provide direct oversight of the beef enterprise and leadership to shepherds managing the sheep enterprise.
• Set and uphold exemplary standards of animal welfare across all livestock operations embedding best practice and continuous improvement through team leadership and operational systems
• Design and implement AMP grazing rotations for cattle, taking full responsibility for…