Countryside Stewardship
Full Mid Tier:
5 year scheme with annual start date 1st Jan each year. Next application round expected Feb 2024 with closing date end July.
Competitive scheme, available everywhere in England.
Can apply online through RPA portal or on paper.
Offers annual payments for 60+ options e.g. low input grassland £132/ha, herbal lays £358/ha, wild bird cover £640/ha, historic buildings £4.03/m2, educational access £309 per visit
Can include capital works for boundary restoration (hedge planting, laying, gapping, fencing) and for water quality works (roofing, concrete yard renewal, guttering, rainwater harvesting, bases for troughs).
Wildlife Offers
5 year scheme, annual start date of 1st Jan, non-competitive. Same application window as above.
Apply online through RPA portal
Simplified set of options for benefit of farmland birds and pollinators. Based on 3% land area (don’t have to include all land).
Grassland, Arable and Mixed packages available.
No capital grants.
Capital Only agreement
Rolling application window, 2 year agreements, set rates for items.
Up to £20k available for boundary works, £20k for water quality items and £20k for ammonia options per agreement.
2 years to complete work and then claim.
Some water quality items such as concrete and roofing require prior approval from catchment officers.
Boundary items available everywhere, water quality items now available in medium and high priority areas – check MAGIC website for priority areas https://magic.defra.gov.uk/MagicMap.aspx
Woodland
Woodland management plan – one off grant for maintenance plan on existing woodland over 3ha (min payment £1000).
English Woodland Creation (EWCO) – for new woodland planting – £300-£400/ha available for 10 years plus capital works for trees, guards, tracks, fencing etc. Minimum area 1ha
For further details of all Stewardship Schemes see: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/countryside-stewardship-get-paid-for-environmental-land-management
Use grants finding tool to see specification and management requirements of options: https://www.gov.uk/countryside-stewardship-grants
Sustainable Farm Incentive
First level of new Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMS).
3 year scheme, quarterly payments, rolling applications, can upgrade standards each year.
Apply through RPA portal. Must check and amend Land Covers before can apply.
3 standards currently available, More standards expected to be added over next 2 years: hedgerows, unimproved grassland, organic, woodland, integrated pest management etc.
| Standard | Level | Payment |
| Arable and horticultural soils | Introductory | £22 per hectare |
| Intermediate | £40 per hectare | |
| Improved grassland soils | Introductory | £28 per hectare |
| Intermediate | £58 per hectare | |
| Moorland | Introductory | £10.30 per hectare |
| Additional payment | £265 per agreement |
Further details from: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sustainable-farming-incentive-full-guidance
Farming Equipment & Technology Fund (FETF)
Replaced the Countryside Productivity Small Grants Scheme.
1st round now closed, 2nd round expected Jan/Feb 2023. Apply via online application.
Minimum grant £2,000, maximum grant £25,000. You can apply for a total of £50,000 over the scheme’s duration.
Set grant rate for each item. Very detailed specifications for each item, needs careful checking.
Horticulture, Forestry, Resource Management, Precision and Analysis, Livestock Handling and weighing equipment, other livestock equipment (items such as dribble bars, GPS, cameras, parlour brushes/mats, crushes).
The Farming Transformation Fund
This offers grants towards capital items to improve farm productivity through more efficient use of water for irrigation, and to secure water supplies for crop irrigation by constructing on-farm reservoirs and adopting irrigation application equipment.
Minimum grant £35,000, maximum grant £500,000.
Online checker to determine eligibility
See: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/farming-investment-fund
Slurry Infrastructure Grant
Intended to help livestock farmers who are already using a slurry system, to upgrade their slurry storage to reach six months storage capacity. New and upgraded stores must be covered.
2 stage application process opens 6th December 2022.
Minimum grant you can apply for is £25,000. The maximum grant is £250,000
Grants can fund up to a maximum rate of 50% of the eligible costs of a project.
Competitive application process focused on those with biggest environmental impact e.g. near protected sites, high priority water catchments.
Check out target areas for 1st round on MAGIC (select ‘Land based Schemes’ – ‘Other’ – ‘Slurry Infrastructure Grant’)
See: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/slurry-infrastructure-grant
Trees for Climate
Tree planting scheme run by The Mersey Forest.
Only available in Cheshire in The Mersey Forest area.
Capital Grants for tree planting and protection, minimum area 0.25 ha (1 acre), no maximum.
Annual payment of £400 per ha for 15 years (50% paid on planting).
Straightforward application and claims process.