Compulsory Purchase & Compensation

Providing expert guidance and support through the complexities of compulsory purchase and securing fair compensation for your property.

Expert Assistance for Land Access Requests

If an authority seeks access to your land, our experienced professionals can guide you through the process, ensuring fair compensation.

Our Rural Professional team offers advice on:

  • Water, gas, oil, and sewerage pipeline schemes.
  • Telecommunication masts.
  • Electricity easements, wayleaves, and infrastructure.
  • Wayleave agreements for B.T. equipment.
  • Valuations for insurance purposes.
  • Water main bursts.
  • New road schemes.
  • Access agreements.

Let us help you navigate these complex situations with confidence and expertise.

Professional Guidance for Compensation Claims

In recent years our team have been, and are involved in advising on schemes including HS2, Newtown Bypass, Severn Trent Water Elan Valley pipeline refurbishment, Newbridge on Wye road improvement scheme, Transco National Grid pipeline to name but a few.

Our services and specialities include:

  • Valuing crop/grazing losses and reinstatement costs.
  • Compiling and negotiating compensation claims.
  • Agreeing accommodation works to ease the effect of a scheme.
  • Compiling detailed photographic Records of Condition Advising on notices and timescales.
  • Overseeing acquiring authorities and contractors.

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Rural Experts

Introducing the McCartneys team.

Simon Edwards

Chairman

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Simon Joined McCartneys LLP in October 2009 and currently undertakes professional work from Brecon, Hay on Wye and the Llandrindod Wells Offices of McCartneys.

Simon is a graduate of the University of Manchester, a post graduate of the University of Reading, a Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (MRICS), a Member of the Institute of Revenue, Rating and Valuation (IRRV) and a RICS registered valuer.

Simon began his surveying career working for the Estates Department of Powys County Council undertaking a wide range of estate management activities. In October 2009 Simon joined McCartneys LLP to work as part of the professional team in Hay on Wye & Brecon and has since specialised in the sale and letting of all types of residential, commercial and agricultural property. His other specialisms include Compulsory Purchase & Compensation, Planning Matters, Business Rating, Landlord & Tenant Matters and Valuations for Probate, Security and Taxation.

Simon is married and living in Llanfrynach near Brecon and takes a keen interest in local life and is a keen all-round shooter when he gets the chance.

Katie Davies

Partner and Auctioneer. Rural Chartered Surveyor

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Katie Davies

Upon leaving Harper Adams University College with a 2:1 BSc (Hons) Degree in Rural Enterprise and Land Management, Jenny joined McCartneys in 1999 at their Knighton Office and Livestock Market. Striving to be one of the first female livestock auctioneers in the country, she quickly began to sell at weekly finished markets, fortnightly store markets and farm dispersal sales.

While expanding the large range of Rural Professional work within Mid Wales and the borders, she became a Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and a Fellow of the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers. Her favourite part of the job is to see a good result for a client. She says “the hardest jobs are always the best when they work out right”. Jenny is also a RICS independent Expert Witness and has acted in Rural Valuations on many disputes. Jenny completes over 120 BPS applications, many of which are cross border applicants together with a large range of Compensation work recently including the Elan Valley Aqueduct Rehabilitation works. Jenny is also a Fellow of the Livestock Auctioneers Association and became an Equity and LLP Partner of McCartneys in 2006.

She lives with her husband Richard and son Tommy on the family farm at Vowchurch. She enjoys playing hockey for Kington Ladies Hockey Club when times allows and enjoys supporting and judging YFC Competitions.
Qualifications & Experience

Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (MRICS), Fellow of the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers (FAAV), Fellow of the Livestock Auctioneers Association (FLAA) and registered by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors as an Expert Witness, Qualified in the Rural Divisions of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, with in excess of 10 years’ post qualification experience specialising in the RICS faculties of Rural Property, Dispute Resolution and Rural Land & Property Jenny is fully conversant with the RICS Practice Statement & Guidance Notes “Surveyors acting as Expert Witnesses”, the Civil Procedure Rules – Part 35, the “Civil Justice Experts‚ Protocol” and has considerable experience in preparing Expert Witness Reports.

Jenny also has the practical experience of Livestock, both cattle and sheep, from selling on a weekly basis at Knighton market.

    Jenny Layton Mills

    Partner & Auctioneer

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    Jenny Layton Mills

    Upon leaving Harper Adams University College with a 2:1 BSc (Hons) Degree in Rural Enterprise and Land Management, Jenny joined McCartneys in 1999 at their Knighton Office and Livestock Market. Striving to be one of the first female livestock auctioneers in the country, she quickly began to sell at weekly finished markets, fortnightly store markets and farm dispersal sales.

    While expanding the large range of Rural Professional work within Mid Wales and the borders, she became a Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and a Fellow of the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers. Her favourite part of the job is to see a good result for a client. She says “the hardest jobs are always the best when they work out right”. Jenny is also a RICS independent Expert Witness and has acted in Rural Valuations on many disputes. Jenny completes over 120 BPS applications, many of which are cross border applicants together with a large range of Compensation work recently including the Elan Valley Aqueduct Rehabilitation works. Jenny is also a Fellow of the Livestock Auctioneers Association and became an Equity and LLP Partner of McCartneys in 2006.

    She lives with her husband Richard and son Tommy on the family farm at Vowchurch. She enjoys playing hockey for Kington Ladies Hockey Club when times allows and enjoys supporting and judging YFC Competitions.
    Qualifications & Experience

    Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (MRICS), Fellow of the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers (FAAV), Fellow of the Livestock Auctioneers Association (FLAA) and registered by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors as an Expert Witness, Qualified in the Rural Divisions of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, with in excess of 10 years’ post qualification experience specialising in the RICS faculties of Rural Property, Dispute Resolution and Rural Land & Property Jenny is fully conversant with the RICS Practice Statement & Guidance Notes “Surveyors acting as Expert Witnesses”, the Civil Procedure Rules – Part 35, the “Civil Justice Experts‚ Protocol” and has considerable experience in preparing Expert Witness Reports.

    Jenny also has the practical experience of Livestock, both cattle and sheep, from selling on a weekly basis at Knighton market.

    Joanna Wall

    Head of Rural Department , Associate Partner, Rural Chartered surveyor

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    Joanna Wall

    Beth joined McCartneys in the Kington office having completed her degree in Rural Enterprise and Land Management at Harper Adams University, graduating with a first class honours degree. She is a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (MRICS), an RICS registered valuer and a fellow of the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers (FAAV). In January 2021, Beth became an Associate Partner in McCartneys.

    She undertakes a wide range of rural professional work including rural and agricultural planning, rural property sales, landlord and tenant advice, property lettings, valuations for purchase and sale and secured lending purposes and compulsory purchase and compensation matters. Beth specialises in grant funding schemes, both in England and Wales. She has successfully secured thousands of pounds of grant funding for clients for a range of purposes including agricultural grants and diversification projects. Beth also assists at Kington market on a weekly basis.

    Beth is a farmer’s daughter from Herefordshire and grew up on a mixed beef, sheep, arable and cider fruit farm. Outside of work she enjoys helping out on the farm, cooking and socialising with friends.

    John Uffold

    Consultant, Rural Chartered Surveyor

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    John Uffold

    John Uffold was the Chairman of McCartneys and partner in charge of Ludlow Livestock Market, having joined the partnership some 44 years ago, previously working in private practice in the West Country and East Midlands and, for a time, as a senior surveyor for the Land Service (formerly part of the then Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food – at the time John was the youngest senior surveyor appointed by the Ministry since the war). He is now a consultant with the business carrying out professional work.

    Graduating from Reading University with a Bachelor of Science Honours Degree in Estate Management and being the last winner of The Estates Gazette Cup for the student of the year, John is a member of The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and a Fellow of the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers, a fellow of the Livestock Auctioneers Association and member of the National Association of Valuers and Auctioneers. (John won the Society of Valuers and Auctioneers National Competition for young auctioneer of the year more years ago now than he cares to remember).
    Whether a Lord or a smallholder, John treats everybody the same and has acted for both in his time at Ludlow, firmly believing it is the job of professional men to help the vulnerable in society and not just those that can pay a good fee.

    John is married to Mary and has two children, Oliver and Ruth. He is a member of a small family farming partnership breeding Pedigree Texel Sheep.

    Formerly a keen young farmer himself, winning a Gold Medal at Smithfield for beef cattle and carcass judging, John also representing England at the European Rally for Tractor driving and fencing.
    John has been associated with the Y.F.C. since moving to Shropshire and was instrumental in McCartneys apprenticeship scheme aimed at bringing young people into the firm and giving them professional training, a career and a job for life. An outdated concept to some but not to McCartneys.

    Traditional values and principles, coupled with modern efficient service and keeping the business in its widest sense relevant to the world in which we live, have been and still are John’s core principles.

    Field of Expertise
    Family disputes? Divorce? Probate? Partnership disputes? Then read on.

    It is a truism that experience is something that you can sell but never buy. Thirty two years of experience, in private practice and government has given John a wide range of experience in all rural professional work and livestock auctioneering. His specialisms, as regards professional work are:

    Valuations for tax planning
    Divorce valuations
    Valuations involving tenancies and legal issues
    Livestock valuations of all types
    As Chairman he has been involved in disputes concerning umpires, arbitrations, court cases and is known in the locality as being able to broker a deal between parties even where they are, to start with, intransigent and emotionally involved. The ability to see both sides of the argument in a pragmatic, rational and businesslike manner is the key to his success. This is particularly important when dealing with divorce cases and partnership disputes.

    T. Wyn Jones

    Consultant

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    T. Wyn Jones

    Wyn is qualified in both the Rural & General Divisions of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors with in excess of 30 years post qualification experience specialising in the RICS faculties of Residential, Rural & Commercial Property together with Dispute Resolution.

    A Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (FRICS), a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (MCIArb) and a Member of the Expert Witness Institute (MEWI) Wyn is registered by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors as an Expert Witness, Accredited Valuer, Arbitrator, and Independent Expert. Wyn also holds office as a Chair on the First-tier Tribunal Property Chamber, Ministerial appointed Chair (and Governing Council member) of the Welsh Valuation Tribunal and appointed member of both English and Welsh Agricultural Land Tribunals.

    Josh Balsdon

    Rural Chartered Surveyor

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    Josh Balsdon

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    Ellie Hopkins

    Rural Professional

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    Ellie Hopkins

    Ellie returned to McCartneys in 2021 after graduating from Harper Adams University with a first-class honours degree in Rural Enterprise and Land Management, after previously completing her placement year with the firm in 2019/2020. Ellie is a qualified member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (MRICS), a RICS Registered Valuer and a Fellow of the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers (FAAV).

    Based in the Brecon and Hay-on-Wye offices, Ellie undertakes a wide range of professional services to include rural property sales, landlord and tenant advice, Red Book valuations for Inheritance and Capital Gains Tax purposes and compulsory purchase and compensation matters.

    Ellie is a farmer’s daughter from Breconshire and lives near Brecon with her husband on a mixed beef, sheep and arable farm. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time on the farm, cycling, running and socialising with friends.

    Other Departments

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    Fine Art & Antiques

    We hold monthly auctions and offer free item valuations by appointment, with no obligation to sell.

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    Join our premier horse sales in Brecon and Worcester, featuring top facilities and convenient access for buyers and sellers.

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    Rural

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    Delivering expert solutions for all your residential, commercial, agricultural, and rural planning and surveying needs.

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    Latest Insights

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    Agricultural & Farm Diversification Schemes

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    Vendor Feedback

    Vendor Feedback   We love hearing from our Vendors, thank you for sharing your experience with us!Sales team – 01562 822244Lettings team – 01562 861886  

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    Trusted Rural Experts Delivering Results

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    Capital Grants Update

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    Congratulations!

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    SFI 2026 – Window 1

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    New Poultry Sale – Saturday 30th May

    The Beech, Little Hereford – Saturday 30th of May First sale of poultry at The Beech Little Hereford to be included in our normal monthly collective sale. ***No other poultry to be accepted to this sale as this is a single vendor sale only *** Any more information contact: Ollie Pugh – 07946397879

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