Meet the section secretary, Gemma Common

Sheep Secretary for the 4th year running, Gemma Common from Hexhamshire, has a great deal of experience and understanding of raising and competing and is currently busy with lambing. Gemma raises Texels X lambs out of the Texel ewe and mule alongside her pure Texel flock on the family farm. “It’s more than a job it’s a way of life” she explains while describing the tasks of a typical year “there is no quiet time, its ‘full-on’ all the time!”. A keen competitor herself, she looks amongst her flock at a show time for an individual sheep with pricked ears, a sweet head, good skin, a good back end, being overall robust and solid and most importantly a ‘look at me look’ “she says. Gemma has successfully competed at the Roman Wall (winning Texel Champion), St John’s Chapel, Alston Show, Allendale (winning overall champion) and Slaley (winning overall champion) in previous years..The Sheep Section that Gemma has organised isn’t just competitive; she has spent time and energy encouraging competitors and has created a section that is informative and educational with clear signage describing the different breeds, histories, their personalities and answering questions like which breeds are hefted to the land, like Welsh’s being out in the open in the wind and the rain and Texels needing to be closer to the farm; “There’s going to be something for everyone to learn” she says. “Things I’ve learned so far is never to be afraid to ask a lot of questions. I’ve learned so much more about MV Accreditation and now have developed quicker formulas for entries. I’ve also got to know many more judges and sponsors and try to secure their ‘services’ for the show as early as January” she says. “Our competitors are livestock farmers who specialise in particular breeds and they in turn encourage their children to go in for the young handler class. For last year’s show (24) we had a record breaking 170 entries.”

 “We ultimately want to encourage youngsters to join in and learn to show “says Gemma “I enjoyed it so much when I was younger, it’s not about just winning, it’s very sociable, you learn a new skill, yes, but it’s also about making new friends and being part of something “she says.