At the time of writing this update it has been over a month since my first day as Tenant Farming Officer at the Scottish Land Commission.
My first impressions have been overwhelmingly positive with the whole team being welcoming and friendly as they introduce me to the organisation, the way it works and what is currently on the go. It’s a close-knit team with a lot of opportunity to discuss and support each other’s projects and ideas and learn from colleagues working across land reform.
As the Tenant Farming Officer role is newly created, the past month has been about getting involved in a broad range of work while helping to shape how the role will develop. I've been supporting tenant farming casework, contributing to implementation of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2025, working with Scottish Government and stakeholder organisations, and looking at ways to raise awareness of the Tenant Farming Commissioner's work and the support available to the sector.
While no two days are the same, one of my main priorities so far has been supporting and promoting the Commission’s Mediation Scheme.
The scheme supports parties to select a trained professional, from our mediator panel, to facilitate constructive and fair resolution. As well as providing access to trained mediators, the Scottish Land Commission can contribute up to £1,000+ VAT towards the cost of mediation, helping to make the process more accessible.
Mediation has many pros, including improved relationships, creative settlements and significantly less financial, time and stress burden compared to litigation and part of my current work is to give the Mediation Scheme a refresh to find ways to make it more accessible to the people who need it. Even though mediation offers a more collaborative approach than formal legal action, it can still be daunting for the parties involved. That’s why it’s important that we have clear, up to date, and user-friendly information about the scheme and how people can access the support. We are working to improve our digital content and supporting materials, including developing a step-by-step guide to the Mediation Scheme guide, an introductory video and materials to hand out at events. Watch this space!
Alongside this work, I am coordinating the next meeting of the Tenant Farming Advisory Forum. The Forum brings together representatives from across the sector to discuss current issues and developments to support transparency, confidence and resilience within tenant farming.
There has been plenty of brainstorming about ways to raise awareness of the TFC and the resources it offers to tenant sector audiences. Not enough people know about the support that the Commission offers to people working in tenant farming and I have been working hard to identifying opportunities to strengthen this through building industry partnerships, networking events, engagement with farming groups, and revising content and resources to name a few.
It's been a busy and rewarding first month, and I'm looking forward to continuing to support the Tenant Farming Commissioner and the wider tenant farming sector.
If you are interested in our Mediation Scheme or would like further advice or information, I can’t stress enough to get in touch, we are here to help. You can contact us through our Tenant Farming Helpline.
