Janet Swadling OBE

Upon retiring from that role in June 2023, Janet continues to be a member of the Board. 

Outwith TIAH, Janet is currently an independent director on the Agricultural and Horticultural Development Board and a director of the City of Cambridge Education Foundation and Zero Waste Scotland. She chairs the HGCA Pension Plan Trustees Limited and, as Chair, recently merged the Cambridge Academic Partnership into United Learning. She is an Associate of the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland.  

Following a decade working for a professional body, the London Stock Exchange, and a further education college, Janet joined the Scottish Agricultural College in 1996, where she held a number of roles, including acting Chief Executive and Principal during 2011-12 when SAC merged with three other land-based colleges to become Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), Deputy Principal and latterly acting Chief Executive for three years until leaving in 2017.  

Establishing TIAH

Janet has held numerous non-executive board positions, including Director of Care Farming Scotland (CFS), a charity she helped to found; Trustee Director of the Citrus Pension Plan; and Director of National Land Based College Limited. She was a director on the Agri-Skills Leadership Group, which co-ordinated and led the agricultural industry’s efforts to establish TIAH as the home of skills and professionalism in agriculture and horticulture.  

Janet is a qualified Chartered Governance Professional/Chartered Secretary with an MBA from Heriot Watt University.  Her interests include skills development, executive coaching, governance, strategy, and risk management. 

In December 2022, Janet was awarded an OBE in His Majesty The King’s New Year Honours list for services to farming and education.