Gamekeeper: keeping the Holkham team safe, sharing the reality of keepering and a day on the greys

I head up a team of six keepers – all good lads and lasses – and alongside them I have a part-time keeper. This makes for a fairly strong team, with lots of different skills to bring to the party. I consider myself fortunate to have a team so dedicated to getting the job done. As a manager, I think I am fairly relaxed, as long as they are putting in the hours I expect.

Lone working and why health and safety comes first

The one thing I constantly have to be on their case about is health and safety. Not that they act irresponsibly – far from it, they are all sensible and experienced – but I have to keep reminding them they are not bombproof. We all carry lone-working devices: a small fob that must be kept on us at all times, with a man-down function and a 24-hour manned response team.

I know my team think it’s a bit of a pain, and I am sure they grumble about it when I can’t hear them, but tough. We operate over a huge area, often on our own at all hours of the day and night, so for me the most important thing is that they all go home safely. “It won’t happen to me” is one of the most dangerous statements you can make, so let’s not tempt providence. Let’s look out for ourselves and each other.

Sharing what keepers do with the wider world

As keepers, we have to be very focused – if we are not, the best results won’t be achieved. But one thing we must be mindful of is not simply putting our heads down, getting on with the job and not bothering to share what we do with people who are interested, or who have preconceived ideas that are not necessarily based on fact.

We should be proud of what we do as keepers, and of the shooting community. We have some great ambassadors for shooting. Being in the limelight and talking in front of a camera is not everyone’s cup of tea, but just 10 minutes of your time explaining a little of what we do and its benefits can go an awfully long way towards creating a much greater understanding. It’s easy to preach to the converted, but it’s much more satisfying to leave the sceptical better informed.

Over the past couple of years, one person has become increasingly involved with my department and the shooting world in general, purely out of a love for the countryside. While this person comes from a completely different working environment from that of a professional gamekeeper, they have quickly developed an impressive understanding of the job – and, what’s more, a passion and enthusiasm that is phenomenal.

Since becoming involved, they have made me take a fresh look at how people perceive our roles as gamekeepers on a large and busy estate. So, in short, rather than putting our heads down and keeping below the radar, let’s share with people the reality of fieldsports, their benefits and how conservation works at the sharp end.

A first go at the grey partridges

We have a month or so to go before our first day, and this year we shall be having a little go at the greys, as numbers in certain areas are promising. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for good weather and a nice day. I love driving partridges, and there is no doubt that the redleg has added a whole new dimension to many shoots, with outstanding partridge shoots up and down the country. But for me, when you get the chance to be involved with a day on grey partridges, in whatever shape or form you participate, that really is the difference between Asti Spumante and vintage Champagne.

Mark Fitzer is the head gamekeeper on the famous Holkham estate in North Norfolk.