I am immensely proud to have achieved CEnv status. I feel that my professionalism and dedication to my role have been formally recognised. The backing of a professional body behind you and those extra credentials after your name can and do make a difference, especially in such uncertain times for the agricultural industry, where quality advice is in need.
Carol Johnson CEnv
Hexham and Northern Rural, Agricultural Consultant
What does an average day look like in your career?
I am lucky that there are no average days.
I am based in Hexham, Northumberland and look after a variety of clients, mainly farmers but also landowners and other stakeholders. My work is driven by client need – they will contact me and ask if I can help. If I can, I will and if I can’t, I will find the person they need!
My focus tends to be agricultural grants, regulation and legislation. This includes Environmental Stewardship schemes especially SFI, CS and ELMS schemes, Forestry Commission work such as EWCO and capital grants for boundary, water and air and slurry.
How did you get to where you are now?
I grew up on the family farm and initially started out as an RPA inspector after graduating from Newcastle Uni. Much to my Dad’s delight!
From there I moved to a small agricultural consultancy and software business, helping farmers with record keeping, mapping, subsidy applications and stewardship schemes. By the time Basic Payment arrived I had moved to Hexham Auction Mart doing a similar role and now continue providing quality bespoke and independent advice and guidance to clients.
Becoming a member of professional bodies like BIAC and IAgrM – now SocAg, having access to fellow professionals, and taking part in their training and education programmes, and achieving my CEnv give me a wider knowledge base than just the farming skills I am so proud to have.
Things are changing at an unprecedented pace, and it is important to use as many resources as possible to keep up-to-date.
In what way does your role consider and protect the environment?
Most of my daily work considers the environment at one level or another.
The schemes I help deliver focus on how it can be enhanced on the ground by people who work on it every day. These can be small scale such as hedgerow management or larger scale slurry investment schemes. Each equally important in environmental change and improvement.
My involvement in Environmental Stewardship Schemes, Woodland Creation, investment into productivity capital grants and such, is based on sound business decisions in harmony with positive environmental change and outcomes. The clients I work with are the custodians of the countryside and the challenges faced by the general population – such as climate change, flooding, soil degradation, water pollution, resilience to change – are faced by them too.
Crucially though, they are privileged to be able to offer practical solutions. The schemes and grants I help co-ordinate, negotiate and enable, bring about change, protect resources, and enhance biodiversity. The conversations we have around the kitchen table have real life consequences outside so consideration is always taken around what the outcomes will be.
The best part of my job is getting out to new places. Places that just the farmer sees.
What are the top three key knowledge areas that are crucial to your role?
- Government policy and scheme rules
- Agricultural knowledge
- Communication skills
How has your focus on environmental impacts changed over the course of your career?
I think that we are all now more than ever aware of environmental change, and moreover the speed of this change. Over the last 20 years of my career, farmers and farming has become more visible to the public, often via social media and TV programmes and this has changed narratives. However, the adage that policy drives decision making has never been more true.
As policy changes and more targets are set such as the drive to net zero, the role of the farmer and landowner does too – now we see that land is becoming more in demand to deliver public goods and as this changes so will my role.
Natural capital, eco-system services, and the like, will continue to carve their own path and become more normalised to the farming business. As this happens more collaborative approaches will be required with catchment scale delivery rather than individual schemes. My role could very well see me doing more facilitating and negotiating alongside advising.
What part of your job do you find the most exciting?
The best part of my job is getting out to new places. Places that just the farmer sees.
A close second is being able to sit down, define an objective, and then help it come to fruition. It doesn’t have to be a huge project – recently I submitted the final claim for planting a small woodland under a EWCO scheme. I had been involved from the very beginning, completed and submitted the application and then handed the final accepted agreement to my client. He did all the practical work himself and proudly presented the wood to me as I gathered the claim evidence. He named it after his daughter. That was a great day.
What are your 3 top tips for those applying for CEnv?
- Be confident in your knowledge
- Speak about what you know
- Don’t be afraid to question
Why would you encourage others in your sector to aspire to become a CEnv?
The most valuable thing I find, is the network of people it opens you up to. So many different people, specialisms and expertise are just waiting to be tapped into.
Having the word chartered after your name also brings an element of recognition and credibility to you, your knowledge, experience and expertise.
I am immensely proud to have achieved CEnv status. I feel that my professionalism and dedication to my role have been formally recognised. The backing of a professional body behind you and those extra credentials after your name can and do make a difference, especially in such uncertain times for the agricultural industry, where quality advice is in need.
Not only did achieving CEnv status improve my confidence in my own ability, but it also highlights my abilities, skills and experience to others too. Finally, those four letters are a conversation starter… as a farmer once asked me; “What does CEnv stand for then…?” Once a conversation starts, who knows where it will lead.
Profile correct as of March 2026.
Carol Johnson CEnv’s registration:
Carol Johnson is registered as a CEnv via membership of the Society of Agriculture (SocAg).
Useful links:
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