General Farm Worker (Livestock) and Ecological Ranger Apprentice
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Company MINDRUM FARMING COMPANY LIMITED
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Provider CITY OF SUNDERLAND COLLEGE
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Location TD12 4QN
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Type Apprenticeship
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Salary £15,392.00 per year
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Sector Agriculture, environmental and animal care
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Ref NAS-2000061873
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Application Deadline Date 30/11/2026
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Start Date 01/01/2027
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Positions Available 1
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Working Week Minimum 37 hours per week, Monday to Sunday, to be arranged. This includes 6 hours of coursework as part of the Apprentice Programme.
Brief Description
Join Mindrum Farm in a practical, hands-on livestock role, principally caring for sheep and cattle alongside pigs, poultry and game. You will learn how good animal husbandry connects with soil health and the wider agroecological system to create a resilient, productive organic farm.
Training to be Provided
Training will be work-based, 6 hours a week for college work.
Future Prospects
There is the possibility of full-time employment upon successful completion of the apprenticeship.
Vacancy Detail
You will support Sam our stockman, and farm owner, Tom, in caring for the livestock and the land that sustains them.
Your responsibilities will include:
- Carry out daily checks of sheep, cattle, pigs and game birds, including feed, water, behaviour, condition and surroundings; promptly report illness, injury, distress or anything unusual
- Help with feeding, bedding, cleaning, housing and pasture management, maintaining high standards of animal welfare, hygiene and biosecurity
- Learn calm, safe livestock handling and movement. Assist with seasonal work, including lambing, calving and other husbandry tasks, at a level appropriate to your training
- Support grazing plans through stock moves, fencing and water checks, and observations of pasture condition, ground conditions and animal performance
- Help grade livestock and assess their condition, using these observations to inform management decisions
- Keep accurate livestock and husbandry records. Assist with weighing, identification, sampling and agreed health tasks under the Sam’s direction
- Helping design farm research needed to clarify and refine our management practice
Other Information
Driving license essential; own transport preferred due to work place location.
Farming can be enormously rewarding, but it is not always easy or glamorous. This is a practical, physically demanding job, often undertaken outdoors in all weathers, with early starts, occasional late finishes and weekend work, particularly during lambing, calving and other busy periods. Animals need looking after every day, regardless of the weather or what else you might have planned. Some jobs are repetitive, muddy, dirty or simply hard work, and things do not always go according to plan. You will need to be adaptable, reliable, observant and willing to turn your hand to whatever needs doing. Good stockmanship requires patience, attention to detail and a genuine concern for animal welfare, including dealing with illness, injury and occasionally death. In return, you will have the satisfaction of doing something worthwhile, working closely with animals and the natural world, developing a wide range of skills and seeing the results of your efforts on the ground. We don't expect you to know everything when you arrive, but we do expect enthusiasm, a willingness to learn and a readiness to get stuck in. This job isn’t for everyone, but if it is right for you – then you shouldn’t be doing anything else!
Accommodation in a farm cottage is proposed as part of the role, with the terms to be confirmed subject to applicants, whether shared or a standalone cottage. You will be responsible for your own costs including council tax, but a room in the cottage, including farm-supplied water and biomass heating would be provided without charge.