Hub Rural

About Hub Rural Agri-food Consultancy

About Hub Rural

Hub Rural helps you achieve your goals in business

Hub Rural exists to help you achieve your goals.  Our services reflect the typical needs of our growing client base, all of whom have a connection with rural assets and include land agency, farm business advice and strategic non-exec and trustee input.  

All the senior people in the business have hands on business experience.  We don’t just preach from our text books, we do what you do – we run businesses.  

We provide advice in each of the three phases experienced by businesses that use rural assets in their commercial activities; these are growth, managing and change.  The first thing we do is make sure that we understand where you or your business is now.  By doing so, we define the phase your business is in, enabling us to deliver what you need from us to meet your objectives.

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Our Mission Statement

We aim to help clients do what they do by providing input that facilitates rather than inhibits progress and which adds value rather than cost.

Our Values

Lots of businesses think they are progressive and different; our clients tell us that we are, which we believe results from our core operational rules.

  • Say what needs to be said

  • Do it now, not next week

  • Focus on “how to” over reasons “not to”

  • Use technology to improve the way we work

  • Avoid inefficiency which delays outcomes

  • Be available, tenacious, creative and resilient: there is always a way!

Meet the Hub Rural Team

Penny Perowne

MSc. MRICS FAAV 01406 404103

Penny is local to the area having lived and worked on her family farm and is now a director of a 1750 acre arable farming business with her husband. She qualified as a chartered surveyor [MRICS] in 2000 and continued to work with Brown & Co to Associate level until 2007. During this time she also gained her qualifications to join the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers as a fellow. As Hub started to grow as an exciting new business, she joined Hugh to take on a range of land agency type activities and started to establish the more permanent relationships with core clients.

Hugh Baker

BSc. Hons. MRICS FAAV 01406 404101

Hugh qualified as a surveyor (MRICS) in 1996. Shortly after qualification, he moved to South Lincolnshire to work with Brown & Co and rose to Associate level. In 2004, a change of sector saw Hugh take a six year stint in the fresh produce sector with a grower/packer/producer business. At this time, the beginnings of the current Hub Rural client base was established, with a range of relationships that characterise the current spread of the Hub Rural’s activities. Since 2010, Hugh has devoted 100% of his time to Hub Rural, and the business has grown significantly during this period. Alongside day to day professional activity, he also holds several non-exec chair & director roles, plus a number Trustee positions, within client agri-business and Estate entities.

James Vickers

MSc. MRICS Surveyor 01406 404102

James joined Hub Rural in 2018 after studying for an MSc in Rural Estate Management at Royal Agricultural University. He is a non-practising solicitor having previously practiced agricultural property law in the local area before deciding to dual qualify. In November 2022 he gained membership of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and is working towards fellowship of the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers.

Mike Reynolds

BSc. Hons. MRICS 01406 404105

Mike graduated from Harper Adams University in 2008 with a degree in Rural Estate Management. Having spent his year in industry at Boughton Estate in Northamptonshire, Mike continued to develop his interest in estate management at Grays Chartered Surveyors in Richmond, North Yorkshire. In addition to general practice work and the sale of redundant churches for several Diocese in the north of England, Mike specialised in the management of traditional estates and sporting assets throughout Yorkshire and County Durham.

In 2012 Mike moved to the Rural Property Management department of Fisher German, in the East Midlands, rising to Associate Director in 2015. Mike was responsible for a wide range of estates, managing his client’s assets in an efficient and innovative way, so as to maximise income and opportunities. Mike has experience acting for traditional, commercial, and Charity clients. In 2018 Mike was invited to attend the Challange of Rural Leadership course, run by the the Worshipful Company of Farmers,in collaboration with the Duchy Collage. Mike joined Hub Rural in April 2022.

Nick Francis

BSc. Hons 01406 404104

Nick graduated from Newcastle University in 2004 with a BSc (Hons) degree in Farm Business Management. After a sound practical grounding Nick started his consulting career with Andersons East, then Bidwells Agribusiness where he rose to Associate level. In 2011 Nick joined KinnAgri Limited, an international management and consultancy business working in Russia, Ukraine and Eastern Europe as well as the UK. During 2015 Nick took on the role as Key Account Manager for Openfield Agriculture and within his role, became Managing Director of Lingrain Storage Limited.  Autumn 2019 saw a change of direction, with Nick leaving Openfield, being employed direct by Lingrain as MD and setting up his own practice working with a range of farms and agribusinesses. In April 2021 Nick became a Director of Hub Rural Ltd.

Claire Baker

BA Hons. 01406 370035

Claire Baker

BA Hons. 01406 370035

Claire has been involved with Hub Rural since inception in 2007.  With the growth of the business Claire has committed more time to managing its day-to-day activities and should be your first contact for accounts, office admin and all non-professional work.

Work with us

We are always looking for the right people to join our team – contact Hugh or Nick for a confidential conversation.