Harper alumna secures director position with Savills

Sarah Jackson, a Harper Adams graduate, recently became director of rural at Savills Edinburgh.

Sarah completed a master's degree at Harper and a weeks work experience at Savills in Telford which turned into a full-time graduate position. Sarah was able to gain experience in rural management and professional work and assisted Clive Beer, her mentor, in the Antrobus Tax Inheritance cases which she says was the beginning of her professional career.

Sarah then spent five and a half years in New Zealand before returning to the UK in 2011 where she re-joined Savills as part of the Scottish professional team. "Over the last four years [I] have worked for some of the most fabulously driven, interesting and successful clients in Scotland."

Sarah experiences great variety within her day to day work, specialising predominantly in valuation for mainly tax and loan security purposes, she visits a wide range of places. "Site inspections can be as fun as my clients, from summoning a boat taxi by raising a red flag on a west coast island visit to bothies that can only be inspected on foot."

Some days are spent in a boardroom with laywers whilst others are spent on farm.

"While farms, estates and country houses make up the majority of my work, I also act on behalf of clients with fish farms, leisure assets, strategic development land and a full range of residential property including a nunnery."

"I have recently taken on the role of leading our rural professional services in Scotland, which brings together a range of specialisms including compulsory purchase, landlord and tenant, rating, and heritage. And while off skiing this year, I learned that I had been successful in my promotion to director."