North Country Cheviot Sheep Society
A Fresh Flock for the Future at Stephney Farm
Ian Knight – Stephney Farm, Seascale, Cumbria
Ian Knight farms 580 acres at Stephney Farm on the edge of the Lake District near Calderbridge, West Cumbria. The holding includes the main steading and two satellite units. Ian currently runs 40 pedigree Limousin cows plus 15 followers and plans to expand to around 100 calving cows. After years of buying in heifers, he switched to breeding his own high-health herd using foundation females from John Logan’s renowned Homebyres line.
Arable cropping includes winter and spring barley for whole-crop silage. Diversification is a growing focus: this year he planted five acres of sunflowers and established a pumpkin patch. Family-friendly events such as Halloween weekends now draw more than 11,000 visitors, while Easter lambing days attract about 3,000, giving the public a first-hand view of modern farming.
Moving to Cheviot Mules
Seeking a better work–life balance and a hardier, less labour-intensive flock, Ian and his wife Kate made the bold decision to replace their 1,000-strong white-faced commercial ewes. After researching several breeds, they chose Cheviot Mules for their sound bodies, good mothering ability and consistent lambing percentages without excessive prolificacy.
Supplying Booths supermarket with Lakeland Lamb—around 45 lambs a week from early November, each targeting a 19.5 kg carcase—meant the new flock also had to produce top-quality meat. Ian also beds and grazes roughly 1,000 Herdwick store lambs annually for the retailer’s Herdwick range.
Last autumn Ian headed to Longtown’s Cheviot Mule sale, where he “enjoyed himself,” coming home with 160 shearling ewes and 120 gimmer hoggs, later adding another 60 from Penrith. Shearlings were put to Suffolk tups, with the best gimmers retained to establish an early-lambing group for Booths’ spring lamb. Gimmer hoggs went to Dutch Texels
Scanning results impressed: shearlings at 202 % (only three empty, few triplets) and hoggs at 120 %
First Lambing Success
The first Cheviot Mule lambing began 5 April and proved a revelation. All ewes were lambed indoors for hygiene and easy supervision, but help was rarely needed. The ewes showed strong mothering instincts and abundant milk, cutting vet bills dramatically. “One year I held the record for the most caesareans with our local vets,” Ian laughs. “No such problem this year.”
The lambs are thriving and filling out well—exactly the outcome Ian hoped for as he builds a resilient, profitable and family-friendly future for Stephney Farm.
Contact Details
For all North Country Cheviot Sheep Society enquiries please contact our secretary:
Corinna Cowin
Mobile: 07834817710
E-mail: secretary@nc-cheviot.co.uk
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