CCM Skipton auctioneer Kyle Hawksworth has been honoured with a double accolade, having been presented with his Certificate of Higher Education in Livestock Market Operations and Management, along with fellowship of industry body, the LAA – the Livestock Auctioneers’ Association.

The graduation and award ceremony was hosted by Harper Adams University in Shropshire, a specialist provider of higher education for the agricultural and rural sector, where Kyle has now successfully completed a four-year course.

He was among next generation auctioneers who were told at the ceremony that they were destined to play an essential role in supporting farming clients, as the industry negotiates developing agricultural policy, both now and into the future.

Kyle, 24, already has extensive auctioneering experience under his belt, having started at the age 16 with stints on the rostrum at Holmfirth, Pateley Bridge and Northallerton Auction Marts, covering multiple livestock, poultry, machinery, small tools and implements sales, also handling sales on behalf of the David Brown Tractor Club. He has also proved his worth as a field officer, involving liaison visits to farms.

He was first appointed junior auctioneer at CCM Skipton in 2019, quickly becoming a valued member of the team and with an increasing involvement across all aspects of the livestock business, notably on the sales rostrum.

He is the third generation from a South Yorkshire farming family. His parents, Brian and Dawn, raise sheep and calves at Thompson House Farm in Bradfield, Sheffield, where Kyle cut his teeth in the agricultural sector from a young age.

Educated at Bradfield Secondary School, in 2017 he undertook a DART Training apprenticeship, gaining a Level 2 Diploma in Work-based Agriculture, before starting his four-year course at Harper Adams, which aims to provide the bedrock of knowledge and skills needed by anyone aspiring to succeed in livestock auction practice.

Away from the rostrum, Kyle’s hobbies and interests include clay pigeon and game shooting, as well as continuing to assist on the family-run farm when time permits. His services have also been in demand - and freely given - for charity auctions