Prestigious appointments for sheep breed group

THE LORD Lieutenant for East Yorkshire has been announced as the new honorary president of the Wensleydale Longwool Sheep Breeders’ Association.

As the group’s new president. Susan Cunliffe-Lister is joined by three newly appointed vice-presidents who include Yorkshire Dales sheep farmer and Welcome to Yorkshire chief executive Sir Gary Verity.

After moving to Yorkshire when she married in 1966, Mrs Cunliffe-Lister, as a keen knitter and spinner, kept a flock of sheep including Wensleydales which were mainly used as a crossing sire for improving fleece quality.

She founded the Masham Sheep Fair in 1986 which has raised more than £160,000 for local charities and she is the head sheep steward at the Great Yorkshire Show.

Sir Gary runs a small flock of Wensleydale sheep and has been a member of the association for more than 15 years.

He becomes a vice-president alongside Suffolk’s Karen Griffiths and Peter Hewitt, who is alderman for the Ward of Aldgate in the City of London and is the immediate past master of the Worshipful Company of Woolmen.

It is the official body governing the promotion of the Wensleydale breed, upholding its distinctive characteristics, and it maintains a register of eligible animals.

The Wensleydale Longwool breed originated in North Yorkshire early in the 19th century from a cross between a longsince-extinct local longwool breed and an outstanding Dishley Leicester ram named ‘Bluecap’.

The breed was developed to produce hardy rams for crossing onto hill ewes, and for high-quality and valuable lustre fleeces.