2026 Nuffield Farming Next-Gen Scholarship Offers Opportunities for Developing Young Talent
The Nuffield Farming are excited to announce the 2026 Next-Gen Scholarship, which is aimed at young people aged 18-24 as part of their developing young talent initiative. Nuffield Farming know the challenges that young people face to build knowledge in our industry, and this scholarship will use the Nuffield Farming Scholar network to link successful applicants directly to farmers.
“This is a unique opportunity for young people at an early stage to get a chance to engage with the Nuffield alumni and learn from their experiences”.
Tom Rawson, Chair of Nuffield Farming
Six awards will be made to young people aged between 18 and 24 years old. There will be 3 Dairy Next-Gen scholarship awards and 3 Regen Ag Next-Gen scholarship awards.
What will the Next-Gen scholarship programme involve?
The programme will take place in June/July 2026 and is designed to give the scholar the opportunity to gain an insight from farmers on how they run their business. After an induction day run by Nuffield Farming at the Farmers Club in London, which will include an overview of the UK agriculture industry, Next-Gen scholars will start either a 28-day Dairy or Regen Ag study tour. The tour will include the Nuffield dairy tour or Groundswell, and visits to agricultural shows. Scholars will visit more than 15 businesses across the UK, staying on farms (with hosts who are all Nuffield Farming scholars) and gaining first-hand experience of a variety of business models directly from the farmer. The programme will be run by the Nuffield Farming Dairy and Regen Ag Groups.
How can young people benefit from this programme?
The scholarship is valued at £6000. It is fully funded, there will be no cost to the scholar for travel, accommodation or food. One of the challenges for young people taking up a Next-Gen scholarship is getting released from work, especially if on a family farm. The scholarship includes a financial incentive of £1,000 to part cover replacement labour cost, to enable a young person to leave the farm.
Next-Gen scholars will be assigned a mentor from the Dairy or Regen Ag Group, who will continue to work with them beyond their initial scholarship. Next-Gen scholars will also have the opportunity to share their experiences at the 2026 Nuffield Farming Conference, held in Leeds on 18-20th November 2026.
Taking part in the programme will enable young people to establish themselves in the industry, while also getting a flavour of all that Nuffield Farming has to offer.
Next-Gen Scholars will be made associate members of Nuffield Farming, encouraged to attend their networking events, including farm walks, regional and study group events, talks, tours and the Annual Conference. They will be fostered and mentored by their respective Nuffield Farming Regional and Study groups, with the aim of progressing to one day become a Nuffield Farming Scholar.
How to apply
The Next-Gen Scholarship application form and more information can be found here.
Contact Charlotte Merson for assistance with applications: charlotte@nuffieldscholar.org
Applications will open on 1 November 2025 and close on 30 January 2026. Interviews, held by Teams, will take place in February 2026. Awards will be announced by 29 February 2026.