Sparsholt College is proud to announce that Arboriculture and Forestry student Sam Kehoe has won the David Cheshire Prize Fund. 

Described by her tutors as an ‘exemplary’ student, Sam joined the Arboriculture and Forestry Level 3 course after completing a degree in Geography, as a way to continue studying in her field from a different angle.  

During her time on this course at Sparsholt, she discovered her love for woodland management. It is this passion and engagement that saw her stand out, gaining distinctions across the majority of her assessments, and ultimately being chosen to receive the award. 

The David Cheshire Prize fund is a £100 cash prize, and is annually awarded to the Arboriculture, Forestry and Woodland Management student at Sparsholt who has achieved the best overall performance on the course.  

Upon receiving the good news, Sam commented “The Arboriculture and Forestry course has helped me to hit the ground running in an exciting and ever more relevant field. I completed a degree some years ago, and this course has been a great way for me to specialise and gain practical skills that have opened doors into the arboriculture industry.” 

Awarded her final grade at Sparsholt over the summer, Sam has now followed her passion and is moving on to study an MSc in Conservation and Forest Protection, of which she says “This would not have happened without the skills, specialist knowledge and confidence given to me by the course and by Sparsholt. I am very grateful to all the tutors, proud of myself and excited for the future!” 

Using a combination of on and off-site facilities, Sparsholt College provides training for the people who will manage and work in our forestry industries for timber production, as well as those who look after and manage individual trees in parks, streets and private gardens.  

Learning from experts in the field, our students will acquire all the practical and scientific skills to work in the industry or to study at an advanced level. Find out more about this leading land-based course here.