Lantra Research Hub

About The Research Hub

Research Categories

Lantra undertakes, and commissions, research to understand the current and future skills needs of the land-based and environment sector, as well as learning requirements, now and in the future.

We use the insights gained through our research to inform policy recommendations, produce practical toolkits and to create opportunities to raise the profile of the land-based and environment sector.

We work with a wide-ranging network of collaborators, including industry, universities, research institutes and government.

For more information about our research, including if you would like to work with Lantra on future projects, please contact us on research@lantra.co.uk

Perception Studies

Lantra undertakes research to understand issues and explore themes that affect the industries within the land-based and environment sector. Some examples of this research include perception studies and short thematic surveys.

What can forestry education in the American Midwest teach us?

5.56 MB

In a Scottish Forestry article on the treatment of forestry in secondary school teaching, Amanda Bryan reports from a fact-finding trip to the US states of Wisconsin and Michigan on the embedding of forestry knowledge and skills in school curriculums and infrastructure. This is followed by a presentation of her research on Scottish pupils' understanding and perceptions of forestry as a career.

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Young People’s Perceptions of Farming

2.09 MB

Researchers from Queen Margaret University Edinburgh were contracted by Lantra on behalf of the Skills for Farming - Sector Attractiveness subgroup in 2023 to undertake research to identify perceptions of farming held by secondary school pupils in Dumfries and Galloway. A mixed methods approach to perception analysis was employed to gain a rich picture of young people’s perceptions and to better understand the ways in which these were developed and influenced.

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Perceptions of Agriculture in Primary School Students

1.32 MB

A Nuffield Project report on how perceptions are formed abour agriculture, agriculture's links with Ireland's Primary curriculum and what technologies can be used to help enable children to learn about farming in a more engaging manner, and who should lead on this.

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Evaluative Research

Lantra is a trusted partner who undertakes evaluative research with the support of government and industry.

Through this research, we measure the effectiveness and success of particular programs, policies, interventions or projects.

We conduct evaluative research to collect information and gather evidence to inform policymakers and our decisions about the training and qualifications we develop.

Interdisciplinary outdoor learning for primary school pupils and Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence

3.92 MB

This PhD thesis reviews the theory of the benefits of spending time outdoors and makes recommendations for farm visits in the context of Curriculum for Excellence.

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Commission for the Land-Based Learning Review - Report to Scottish Ministers

2.85 MB

The Commission for the Land Based Learning Review sought to review learning in Scotland’s land-based and aquaculture sectors - from early years to adulthood in order to provide independent, evidence-based advice to Scottish Ministers. The aim of the work was to help deliver a just transition to net-zero, by ensuring the learning system equips people with the skills and knowledge both they and the Sector requires and that the workforce is sufficient.

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Evaluation Of The Scottish Growers Training Pilot Report

1.05 MB

An evaluation of the Scottish Growers Training Programme, which was a pilot aimed at addressing a specific gap in skills provision for small producers.

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Workforce Research

We source and analyse reliable and accurate research on the workforce for the land-based and environment industry providing us with robust evidence to inform our work with industry and policy makers.

Workforce research provides insights about the current, and future, workforce across the land-based and environment sector, including demographic and background characteristics of the workforce and skills requirements. 

A Skills Classification for the UK Plans for development and maintenance

2.02 MB

Report outlining how advances in Natural Language Processing (NLP) tools could be used to create a Skills Classification for the UK. The report suggests this would generate positive economic benefits by making the UK’s workforce more adaptable, help training and education providers to be more efficient, enable employers to be more innovative and flexible, and, by simplifying re-entry and progression within the labour market, enhance employment opportunities.

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A Review of the Future of the Forestry Workforce in Scotland

616.46 KB

This study, prepared on behalf of Lantra and the Scottish Forest and Timber Technologies Skills Group indicates that the trees and timber workforce will need to increase in the period up to 2027 in order to undertake the forecast harvesting, restocking and new woodland creation programmes.

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Forestry Workforce Research

1.36 MB

This report investigates the status of employment, education and skills in forestry in England and Wales. It follows a similar report undertaken in Scotland in 2019 to build a complete picture across Great Britain.

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Events