Despite the seemingly endless cold, wet winter, our farmers have to look ahead. Sheep farmers are planning for summer and one of their perennial concerns is shearing. For welfare reasons, sheep need to lose their thick woolly coats once the hot weather comes – but in the UK we don’t have enough expert shearers. Traditionally, our farmers benefit from the temporary access granted to international professionals, most from Australia and New Zealand, who work all year and travel as needed.
But in recent years, the Home Office has become increasingly reluctant to grant permission for these highly skilled workers, and so far in 2026 it has refused them altogether. Sheep farmers are worried that many animals could go unshorn this summer, leading to health and welfare problems like fly strike and heat exhaustion, with the accompanying costs involved.
Just 75 professionals needed
The RSPCA points out, “Most breeds have wool that grows continuously, so adult sheep need shearing at least once a year to help reduce the risk of external parasites and keep the sheep comfortable. Shearing has to be carried out carefully and sympathetically to avoid problems such as handling-stress and injuries.”
In the UK, we only need to bring in an extra 75 professionals, who can deal with up to 1.5 million sheep between April and June. In 2025, at the last minute, the Home Office did agree to allow the international specialists visa-free access. There are some British shearers, and more are trained every year, but such seasonal work doesn’t attract or keep enough personnel to serve all our sheep farms.
Welfare at risk
Chief executive Jill Hewit of The National Association of Agricultural Contractors (NAAC), which leads on the visa concession application, described the Home Office decision as “hugely disappointing”.
“This immediately puts sheep welfare at risk,” she said. “The concession has been essential as the visa process does not allow for these highly skilled but ‘unqualified’ workers. We cannot simply train more operators in the UK as it is a highly skilled operation that improves with experience.”
And the National Sheep Association’s policy manager, Michael Priestley, has urged members to raise the issue with their local MP, to ensure the Home Office knows that the issue of shearer shortages threatens animal welfare and the “long-standing cultural exchange in which shearers, both from Britain and internationally, lengthen their working season by working overseas.”
Another problem for farmers
A government spokesperson said the UK has “strengthened and reduced reliance on overseas workers”, adding, “We are working closely with the sector to support anyone who needs to put alternative arrangements in place, following a period designed to help develop long-term solutions.”
It’s hard to see why the Home Office is so concerned about fewer than a hundred skilled workers coming in on a temporary basis to do a specific and very difficult job that needs a lot of experience and fitness.
Farmers these days have many problems to contend with – climate change, labour shortages, and lack of clarity over environmental initiatives, to name but a few. If the government insists on this ban, both they and their livestock will be disadvantaged by losing a unique working practice that has served them well at little or no cost to the country.
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