Game bird shoot

Hi, I own 1300 acres of arable, we have a bit of woodland surrounding fields but don't own any of it, im wondering if there's any point in myself starting a shoot? Will I make money out of it or just break even?
not sure how you price these sort of things but any advice would be great.
 
1300 acres is a good size, Norfolk is nice and dry
you can certainly easy break even and enhance the land for wildlife
you need 6 to 12 paying members for the cash outlay each year
you need two keen young amateur gamekeepers/feeders
you will need game crops
how about planting a few small spinneys
dig a pond
 
Depends on how interrested u are in game shooting? Can be a lot off work nvloved and depends wot sort of scale ur thinking about too.

If u are keen u could probably start up a wee syndicate but a lot will depend on ur ground. Is it dead flat or have small valleys u could fly birds across with guns in the bottoms?
If u are prepared to plant some cover crops as well would be a big benefit and make it more appealing as a shoot.
Are u in any HLS type environmental schemes as maybe grants/subsidies available for various different things from beetle banks, new hedges/woods, even supplementry feeding and even some cover crops depending on the mixes which all could help ur shoot and make ur land more appealing for nature in general

U could also just employ a land agent to value it and let it out to a shooting tennant (if ur not really that bothered about shooting) u will get an anual rent every year possibly plus a extras for cover crops etc.
Bear in mind the shooting tennant will need access over ur land esp from july/aug time onwards, not uncommon for farmers and keepers to be at loggerheads over acces (usually more with tennant farmers thou)

Probably an impossible question to properly answer over the net not knowing the area or ur farm, but it is a big enough area to do something with if u wanted too and the ground/terrain suits, but probably better to get some out to have a quick look over it and give u an opinion
 
That is one huge question. Making money so you are talking a commercial shoot. The big question - you say 1300 acres of arable ground, will this be a shoot with a farm on it or a farm with a shoot on it. Arable ground mixed with the right terrain to create challenging drives can be excellent for game shooting but to get the best from the shoot may be at the expence of the farm. You would really have to cost out setting up the shoot - pens, feeders, creation of drives, labour costs, vehicle costs etc etc Game crops are a must but can these be placed to the benefit of the shoot but not at the expence of the farm. An acre of game crop can provide a lot of good cover to hold birds but if the same acre was in wheat yielding 3+ tonnes/acre at £200/tonne what land use provides the most income.
I certainly would not be diving in without a great deal of research. If you have good pheasant ground renting it out to a syndicate at say £2/£3 per acre may not bring in a huge amount of cash but the expence and success/failure of the shoot would not be your problem.
 
If you can make it wipe it's ar$e you've done well you won't in the first say three years after pens ,kit ,feed ,cover and all the other costs involved but if you want to get some like minded guys together and you supply the land very big cost then you could have an enjoyable time with mates and walk before you can run so to speak then see what happens
Norma
 
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