Purdey Awards: shoots tie for gold

For the first time, two entries — Lochindorb Moor and the West Sussex Biodiversity Project — have tied for the Purdey Gold Award for Game and Conservation.
The Purdey Awards, now in their 10th year, were held on 18 November and presented by the Duke of Wellington at a ceremony in central London. Judges included ST’s Editor Camilla Clark and editor of The Field, Jonathan Young. The Purdey trophy and cheques for £4,000 each were awarded to Alasdair Laing, owner of the Lochindorb estate in Morayshire, and Adrian Weller, who leads the West Sussex Biodiversity Project, near Amberley.
The Purdey Awards for Game and Conservation are held each year by London gunmaker James Purdey & Sons. They aim to encourage imaginative conservation projects, which improve habitats for both reared and wild gamebirds and in the process benefit other species
of flora and fauna. The projects enhance biodiversity on shoots
and in the wider countryside.
Richard Purdey, who has been running the awards since 1999, said: “Both entries are shining examples of how simple measures correctly applied can achieve extraordinary results. By pure coincidence both estates were awarded the same points by the judging panel and thus share this year’s Purdey Gold Award for Game and Conservation.”