Tilly Abbott 25 Suffolk
Resourceful, resilient and deeply passionate about wool, Tilly left a lasting impression on the panel, not least when a storm caused technical issues during her interview and she calmly carried on regardless. Farming a flock of Romneys, Tilly is a strong advocate for British wool and spends much of her summer contract shearing, gaining experience across a wide range of systems. Curious and outward-looking, she sees huge value in learning from others, even when their farms look very different from her own. Tilly enjoys attending NSA events and farm walks and comments: “Even if a farm isn’t quite comparable to your own, there’s always an idea, process or practice that sparks something you can take home and make work.”
August 2026
Now is the time for me to take some time to reflect on my busiest time of the year. I started contract lambing in early January and moved from farm to farm. Shearing started with a few in March before really picking up in May through to July. I am now looking forward to drawing out some finished lambs.
The Suffolk coast is really quite dry, so lamb growth is starting to plateau and grass growth is non existent. But I am very impressed with how my flock of NZ Romneys have coped under pressure from extreme wet over winter to extreme dry this summer.
I can’t believe we are already halfway through the NSA Next Generation Ambassadors programme. I really enjoyed our last session at NSA Sheep Event with Wyn Owen.
I gained a lot from the session on personal development and I am looking to bring this into my own business.
Reflecting on the past six months of the programme I have learnt so much already. The session with Phillipa Page, Flock Health, was a particular highlight. Our discussion on sheep health, production and biosecurity was definitely food for thought for most of us in commercial settings and I left with some new ideas to try out myself. I don’t think an entire week with her would have been enough time to cover everything.
I am also really enjoying keeping in touch with the other ambassadors around the country as our systems and lives are so varied. There is still so much experience to share with each other no matter how different our businesses are.
Resourceful, resilient and deeply passionate about wool, Tilly left a lasting impression on the panel, not least when a storm caused technical issues during her interview and she calmly carried on regardless. Farming a flock of Romneys, Tilly is a strong advocate for British wool and spends much of her summer contract shearing, gaining experience across a wide range of systems. Curious and outward-looking, she sees huge value in learning from others, even when their farms look very different from her own. Tilly enjoys attending NSA events and farm walks and comments: “Even if a farm isn’t quite comparable to your own, there’s always an idea, process or practice that sparks something you can take home and make work.”
August 2026
Now is the time for me to take some time to reflect on my busiest time of the year. I started contract lambing in early January and moved from farm to farm. Shearing started with a few in March before really picking up in May through to July. I am now looking forward to drawing out some finished lambs.
The Suffolk coast is really quite dry, so lamb growth is starting to plateau and grass growth is non existent. But I am very impressed with how my flock of NZ Romneys have coped under pressure from extreme wet over winter to extreme dry this summer.
I can’t believe we are already halfway through the NSA Next Generation Ambassadors programme. I really enjoyed our last session at NSA Sheep Event with Wyn Owen.
I gained a lot from the session on personal development and I am looking to bring this into my own business.
Reflecting on the past six months of the programme I have learnt so much already. The session with Phillipa Page, Flock Health, was a particular highlight. Our discussion on sheep health, production and biosecurity was definitely food for thought for most of us in commercial settings and I left with some new ideas to try out myself. I don’t think an entire week with her would have been enough time to cover everything.
I am also really enjoying keeping in touch with the other ambassadors around the country as our systems and lives are so varied. There is still so much experience to share with each other no matter how different our businesses are.
