The Kinkell Team
Find out a little bit about our dedicated team.
Our Story
While Kinkell Byre was built in the 1700s as a winter home for the cattle of Kinkell Farm, the farm once stretched all the way to St Andrews. The cattle huddled in the main dining room, their food was stored in the long shed (where the bar is) and the tattie shed at end of the dining area housed the dairy as well as tatties. Some of the stone used to build the byre came from the ruins of Kinkell Castle, which stood near here, down by the sea.
Now part of our logo, Archie, the highland bullock, who lived to the ripe old age of 18, now watches over the entrance to the Byre.
The Fyfe family have farmed at Kinkell since 1950 and since 2003, Kinkell Byre has hosted a wide range of events, weddings, student balls, corporate dinners and activity days. The experience gained in this time gives the team at Kinkell the ability to ensure our customers realise their vision for their perfect event.
Today, Kinkell Farm is a conservation site, with many projects underway to increase biodiversity on ours and neighbouring land. We have planted trees, created ponds and wildflower meadows and are gently grazing the land to benefit nature with our highland cows.
Tamsin Fleming
Tamsin started as a Byre Assistant in 2024, and has since stepped up into the roles of Byre Coordinator, Byre Deputy and now progressed to her new role as Byre Manager. She has dedicated herself over the years to so many of your fantastic weddings and we could not be prouder of everything she has achieved!
With a wealth of knowledge and experience across the venue, Tamsin has also been involved in some exciting projects at The Byre – most recently the launch of our beautiful new Wedding Lodge.
When Tamsin is off, she is most definitely making the most of her annual leave and ticking off her 35 countries by 30 goal (currently at 28 countries,). When she is closer to home, you’ll often find her climbing a Munro, walking with her two spaniels or spending time with her family, boyfriend and friends.
Shona Trueland
Shona is our Byre Coordinator and focuses on all our on-site accommodation, ensuring every guest enjoys an easy and comfortable stay from arrival to departure.
She also works closely with our couples and suppliers to support venue coordination across weddings and events, ensuring every detail comes together beautifully.
Fresh from planning her own October 2025 wedding, Shona brings first-hand experience of the excitement (and the spreadsheets!) that come with creating your dream day. As a newly married bride, she understands how important thoughtful planning and clear communication is to perfect your day.
When she is not at work helping bring your wedding visions to life, Shona soaks up newlywed life with her husband Harry and spends precious time with their baby boy.
Sophie Denwette
Sophie is our Byre Events and Marketing Coordinator and looks after all things social media, keeping them full of beautiful wedding inspiration.
Sophie studied Marketing and also Illustration, so comes with amazing hands-on experience, making her the perfect fit for our wee team at Kinkell.
She works closely with our team, couples and suppliers to ensure every event is presented with a friendly face and attention to detail- both online and behind the scenes. From capturing special moments to keeping our Kinkell community updated with the latest happenings at the Byre. She brings a creative eye to everything she does!
Outside of work, Sophie loves spending time at home with her gorgeous family of five, spending as much time with her three beautiful children. She is also still patiently waiting for a certain ring… over to you, Simon!
Brian Scott
Brian has worked at Kinkell for over 25 years, initially as the leading member of the team that ran the pheasant farm, then helping out with all kinds of corporate activities from highland games to clay pigeon shooting, quad biking and off-road driving.
In 2012, Brian started up a new bar business, Event Bars St Andrews and is now helping to run Kinkell Bars
Brian continues to work at Kinkell as the Farm Manager and helps look after the venue with his vast knowledge of the building and grounds
At the beginning and end of the summer months, Brian also collects and drops off boxes for Kinkell Storage.
Rory Fyfe
Rory moved to Kinkell with his parents at the age of 14 and now lives with his family in Kinkell Farm House
He used to work on the pheasant farm and remembers Kinkell Byre when it was full of calving cows
Rory has helped launch new projects at Kinkell, such as the 10 self catering cosy Cabins which opened in 2022, the Rewilding Project and lots of new exciting things to come in the future!
Sandy Fyfe
Sandy grew up at Kinkell and moved back there to live with his family when it was still a working farm back in 1993.
In 2003, after trying his hand at everything from cattle and pheasant farming to off-road driving and highland games, Sandy settled on the idea of converting one of the largest old farm steadings in Fife into a wedding and events venue.
The first step was putting a dance floor into the old Byre (cattle shed) and since then, Sandy gradually developed the venue; adding a toilet block, repairing the shed roofs and installing glass doors to create one of the most impressive and versatile barn venues in Scotland.
Since 2005, Sandy grew the corporate, weddings and student events business for nearly 20 years. Sadly Sandy passed away in July 2024 but leaves a great legacy with Kinkell thriving as a venue and events business.
Tegan Hancock
Tegan is our Byre Assistants. She works almost every wedding through the evening and ensures everything runs smoothly, packs up any décor at the end of the night, maintains the cleanliness of the Byre and the bathrooms.
She works on the bar as well so is always on hand if you or any guests need anything until the very end of the night.
Coco
Coco came to Kinkell in 2021 as Head of Conservation Grazing.
Coco is responsible for looking after the land in a way that it will encourage ancient natural processes to take hold again, supporting our rewilding project and encouraging greater biodiversity.
Ginger
Ginger came to Kinkell in 2021 as Assistant Conservation Grazer.
Ginger (the clue is in the coat) reports to Coco and works on breaking up the grass to encourage growth of more diverse plant life and carefully placing dung to encourage bugs, beetles and all sorts of wildlife.