Winton Teams

Rae has been linked with Winton Castle for over 30 years, having grown up on the surrounding Estate where she & her family still live.

She began work at Winton Castle back in 2002 with the catering team on some of the first events to take place at the venue. Over the years she has gained a wealth of knowledge and experience, and was at the helm of most of the Weddings for 13 years and has now moved to a more operational role in the running of the Castle.

Rae is a country girl through and through and enjoys being outside in the sun, wind and rain, or sitting by an open fire with a nice cup of tea watching one of her 1000+ DVDs. She and her husband Paul have 3 beautiful and energetic girls who keep her busy in her ‘spare’ time.

Julie joined Winton in early 2010 and brings with her over 30 years of experience in the Tourism & Hospitality Industry. She is never allowed to forget that she has been in the industry longer than some of the team have been alive but her sage wisdom and experience are ALWAYS deferred to.

A cosmopolitan girl at heart (her Mastermind specialist subject would be shopping), she has grown to love estate life and has even been spotted enjoying some of Winton’s outdoor activities!

Johanne joined the Winton Team in December 2022 bringing with her a wealth of experience gained within exclusive five-star hotels, Fonab Castle in the Highlands of Scotland, The Bonham and The Howard in central Edinburgh and historic wedding venue, Borthwick Castle, to name but a few.

Johanne loves to travel, having journeyed around the world in 2013, and enjoys being outdoors enjoying a walk along the beaches near home in East Lothian. Any spare time is spent trying new restaurants or having a cosy night in reading or watching a good murder mystery on TV.

Janis joined Winton July 2008 and since this time her role has grown and developed. Today Janis plays a key role in events at Winton Castle, from Gala Dinners, Conferences, Winton Highland Games, Corporate Team Building days to taking Winton Woodfuel log orders. Janis is our dedicated Winton Trail Run organiser and loves the outdoors.

She enjoys running as a hobby and is always looking for new events to stretch her abilities.

Lexi joined the events team in April 2018, she studied Creative Media and loves working in historic places such as Leeds Castle, Archerfield Estate and now Winton Castle!

She spends her free time rambling around the East Lothian countryside, kayaking, reading novels and travelling.

Fay joined the Winton team in April 2018 and brings with her hospitality and events experience from Aberdeenshire, Edinburgh and Switzerland where she spent six years living in Zermatt.

When Fay is not enjoying country adventures from her family farm in Fife, she can be found following her other passions of art history and calligraphy, or as a keen mixologist, concocting a variety of virtuous cocktails!

Emily joined the events team at Winton in November 2023 and brings with her hospitality experience from Kent, Norfolk and now Scotland! She loves working in the historical sector such as Hever Castle in Kent and now here at Winton Castle.

She spends her free time trying new food spots, walking around the countryside and visiting various historical palaces and castles.

Scott joined the team in 2021 bringing a variety of the skills needed to tackle the many facets of his important role as Caretaker at Winton.

With over 2 decades in the motor trade doing after sales, along with a wealth of other practical and hands-on experience from hospitality and road and pavement artistry, Scott is well-placed to take on the challenges of a castle and all the events inside and out!

Scott is a family guy and spends most of his spare time enjoying the outdoors of East Lothian with his family.

Dependable like Mr Ben to be there when you need him and always willing to help. He draws from a lifetime’s experience of gardening where he could drive a tractor before he could walk (almost).

He remains the Highland Games caber champion and can turn his hand to most outdoor work as well as assisting with caretaking duties. Off and on the estate – he can be found moving bee hives.

Calling Kenya his home, Seumas found ‘temporary summer work’ at Winton, but has successfully been persuaded to stay. Having studied agriculture and then completing his safari guiding course in South Africa, so working on the castle grounds suits him perfectly. His real passion is to expand Winton’s biodiversity and conservation opportunities.

He can be found birding, reading or playing tennis in his spare time.

Neil was born secateurs in hand ready to prune anything in his way. To nurture (and tame) these skills, he undertook horticultural training at Brackenhurst college in Nottinghamshire.

He moved to Edinburgh in 2007 to work at the Botanics and joined the Winton team in September 2023.

When he’s not finessing the grounds at Winton Neil enjoys the countryside, a good book and a wee dram of whisky on a dark winter’s night.

Sarah is former horticulturalist trainee of The MacRobert Trust in Aberdeenshire but originally coming from the sunny south in Brighton.

She joined in early 2022 to assist Erika in continuing the legacy of nurturing and developing the beautiful gardens at Winton.

She has a love for cut flowers, drinking tea and being near the sea.

As 24 times Scottish champion, he has every reason to show off, but takes persuasion. An instructor second to none, with novice and experienced guns.

Land Rover, Mitsubishi, Toyota, Ford, Jeep or even quad bikes, Hugh has experience with them all! Offering off-road driving experiences or driver training on our purpose build track, you’ll be in safe hands with our own BORDA qualified instructor.