STUDENTS from West Oxfordshire have been cutting through the competition after winning awards at an international hedge laying competition.

Countryside management students from Abingdon and Witney College won in a number of categories at the Annual Bampton International Hedge Laying Championships last week.

This was the first time that students from the college had entered the competition, the only one of its kind in England.

Hedge laying is the process of planting hedges and maintaining their shape through trimming the sides of the hedge, called snedding.

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Toby Swift, who teaches countryside management at Common Leys Farm in Hailey, near Witney, said: “The students did really well, especially for novice hedge layers.

“I’m absolutely delighted by the result.”

Eynsham resident and student Alex Fenton won first place in the women’s category.

The mother-of-one said: “It was a huge surprise, I didn’t think I had the experience to win. It’s certainly given me great encouragement.”

Fellow student and Carterton resident Kane McIntosh came first in the novice pairs category.

The 19-year-old said: “great to know a lot of local people are interested in keeping these skills alive and it’s nice to see people at different stages of their hedge laying skills.”

Mr Swift has only recently added hedge laying to the course at Abingdon and Witney College.

After a donation of £3,000 from the Fairford, Faringdon, Filkins and Burford Farming Club (FFFB), the college was able to afford hedge laying equipment.

The 49-year-old father-of-one said: “It is important to keep these sorts of skills alive and hedge laying is an essential part of countryside management.

“It is important for younger people to learn these skills especially in Oxfordshire.

“I think the average age of a farmer in the county is about 60, so younger people do need to become involved.

“Countryside management is an incredibly diverse field. I’ve worked in it for 31 years.

“If you get into this field you’re almost guaranteed work, whether you work on the estates, or in conservation or with trees.”

Miss Fenton, 42, previously worked in hospitality.

She said: “After having my daughter I wanted to change careers and then I found this course right on my doorstep.

“I absolutely love it. One day you might be up a tree, the next you could be using a chainsaw.

“I’d like to go into woodland conservation, which will be important in the years to come.”