Grouse shooting communities have stronger sense of belonging and exercise more, study finds

Jimmy Shuttlewood, head gamekeeper, prepares for the Glorious Twelfth on his North Yorkshire grouse moor  - Charlotte Graham 
Jimmy Shuttlewood, head gamekeeper, prepares for the Glorious Twelfth on his North Yorkshire grouse moor - Charlotte Graham

Grouse shooting communities have higher levels of wellbeing and do more exercise, a major study into the sport has found as gamekeepers prepare for the Glorious Twelfth.

The University of Northampton found that moorland management by grouse estates results in “a complex web of economic, social and intangible benefits that can have direct and indirect financial benefits”.

These included a sense of “belonging, strong social networks, lower levels of loneliness, greater sense of job security, and a strong sense of identity based on a shared heritage and culture”.

Estimated to be worth £2billion to the UK each year, grouse shooting is expected to see a slow start this year as overseas visitors struggle to attend with coronavirus restrictions in place.

But despite the uncertainty of the pandemic, those living and working the on the moors are confident about the future and their job prospects, the researchers found.

Tracey Latham-Green, a co-author of the study, said they found “strong and vibrant communities” despite the challenges.

Jimmy Shuttlewood carrying out the final checks on his North Yorkshire grouse moor with his dogs and children - Charlotte Graham 
Jimmy Shuttlewood carrying out the final checks on his North Yorkshire grouse moor with his dogs and children - Charlotte Graham

One of the largest studies in its field, they collected data from 644 people across the country to compare uplands communities with other rural areas and national averages.

Office of National Statistics research shows that 62 per cent of people across Britain feel they belong to their neighbourhood, but the study found that this rose to 87.1 per cent of those living in moorland communities.

Of these individuals, 69 per cent completed the NHS recommended 150 minutes of exercise a week compared to a national average of 66 per cent of men and 58 per cent of women.

Those who participated in grouse shooting also showed a higher average score on the Warwick-Edinburgh well-being scale, the researchers found.

The findings came as no surprise to Jimmy Shuttlewood, the head gamekeeper on a North Yorkshire grouse moor who is currently carrying out the preparations for the Glorious Twelfth on Wednesday which marks the start of the season.

“I live in a bit of a bubble. I know all of my neighbours and we all interact with each other and help each other out and we have contact with the community and the schools,” he told the Telegraph.

“We are living in a difficult place and we have to help each other, especially when it snows, or the car breaks down, or the school taxi doesn’t turn up, we just all pull in.

“We find it quite bizarre when we get to different parts of the country and they don’t behave that way and people are rude to each other and selfish, it is quite a shock.”

The Glorious Twelfth on Wednesday will be the start of the shooting season  - Charlotte Graham 
The Glorious Twelfth on Wednesday will be the start of the shooting season - Charlotte Graham

Mr Shuttlewood is currently carrying out checks on machinery and access points and, getting in touch with caterers and local restaurants that will take the grouse and contacting members of the local community to see if they want work.

“We take young people from about 13-years-old to help with the beating,” he said. “It is usually their first job and it gets them away from the computer and the play station and out into nature.

“We are making sure that everything is working. We don’t want to ruin anyone’s holiday by them turning up and us not being prepared, so we are making sure that every detail is five star, even polishing our boots and ironing our shirts.”

Because of coronavirus they are expecting fewer visitors from abroad and a slow start.

“Hopefully the Americans and the rest of the world are going to come later in the season,” he said.

“It is probably one of the most natural activities for social distancing because everybody is distant anyway. The only thing we have to be careful of is travelling from A to B and we are following public transport rules.

“Most of the time people are walking anyway and the guns will have to travel in their own cars or in family groups and we will have lunch on the hillside.”

Dry weather also means that grouse numbers are low on dry heath moors, for many this has been the same story for the last two seasons.

A dry spring has seen low grouse numbers on many moors - Charlotte Graham 
A dry spring has seen low grouse numbers on many moors - Charlotte Graham

“We have never known it so severe as it was this spring for dry weather”, Mr Shuttlewood said, but neither a pandemic nor the weather seemed to dampen his spirits.

“It will be a slow start to the season and a quick finish. But there are other moors that will do ever so well and have a full season. But that is just nature and we are working in nature.”

The University of Northampton also found that there are also both direct and indirect financial benefits to grouse shooting including work for rural communities and the promotion of tourism.

Estates care for the environment, including bracken and tick control, and encourage peat formation which in turn results in carbon sequestration, they note.

The researchers concluded that the “long-term financial impact is massive” and the “economic model works and should be facilitated rather than hindered”.

But they recognised that more needs to be done to communicate the benefits as shooting is a “controversial area, with a number of high profile opponents with expertise in utilising social media” whilst those who take part in the shoots feel they cannot change perceptions “due to their lack of social media expertise”.

Despite the opposition the paper warns policy makers that any attempt to change grouse shooting “could be likened to removing a leg from a chair: a community might be able to balance in the short-term, but it would cause irreversible damage to its long-term future.”

The report was welcomed by Adrian Blackmore, Director of shooting at the Countryside Alliance, who said: “Those familiar with our remote upland communities will not be surprised by this, as by their very nature those communities connected to the activity tend to be more socially vibrant, and economically resilient, than those that are not.”

He noted that many communities will need to “positive boost” this season as a number of moors have had to cancel their shooting because of a lack of grouse, adding: “After all the hardship experienced as a result of coronavirus pandemic, this will come as a bitter blow, and it is when that community spirit really comes into its own”.