Page 30 - Pembrokeshire Skills Report 2024

Farming
The majority of workers in this sector are
farmers and farm workers making up 71% of
the sectors workforce. The concern here is that
40% are over the age of 55, which creates a
huge risk for skill loss, mentorship and
succession planning.
Up until 2018 there has been a steady rise in
the sector jobs across the county, however
since 2018, there has been a 22.6% drop in
jobs. There are multiple possible reasons for
this, data taken from Farming Facts and Figures
Wales 2022 1, identifies all livestock production
in Wales has increased since 2011 (except for
Beef Sector which shows a slight decline)
However the report also highlights that the
labour on holdings has decreased by 8,000
over the same period. This could indicate that
automation and more streamlined systems
have been implemented.
Other reasons cited for the decline in farm
workers include:
• Farmers families encourage to pursue other
occupations
• Small farm economic viability
• Perception of the role
• Sustainable Land Management (SLM)
legislation
• Change of land use for solar, wind or carbon
capture
• Changes to funding models
Obviously, these reasons are more concerning
as this suggests farm closures or diversification
to other markets.
Further changes will be coming soon, with
Agriculture being the largest carbon emitting
sector in the county, and new Sustainable Land
Management legislation, farmers will need skill
development in making this change.
In short there is a lot of change within this
sector with an expectation of an ageing
workforce to make the transition
Food & Land Management
Fishing
Pembrokeshire has a rich history of fishing,
however in 2021 only 1% of the landed UK
value is attributed to Wales 2.
Fish processing in Pembrokeshire mainly
concerns shellfish predominantly crab and
lobster.
There has been an increase in local shell
fishermen adding value to their own catch, as
well as businesses processing local bought in
catch. This local trade is essential to
communities and for the tourism “local
produce” offer.
The RLSP has been advised that access to
shellfish production training is challenging.
Arborists, Urban Tree Management
In 2023 Pembrokeshire launched an urban tree
planting strategy 3, which aims to promote
urban tree planting across 11 settlements. This
plan will require specialist urban arborist skills,
which differ greatly to forestry worker skills.
There is a huge lack of this kind of training in
Pembrokeshire.
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1: Farming Facts and Figures, Wales 2022 (gov.wales)
2: Fishing data and insight | Seafish
3: Urban Tree Planting Strategies - Pembrokeshire Coast National Park