Sustainable Farming Incentive Applications - NOW OPEN
From today (30th June 2022) you can make an application for the SFI through the rural payments portal.
It is possible to “stack” an SFI agreement with existing BPS, Countryside Stewardship or Environmental Stewardship agreements / claims, however it will depend on the specific options already within your agreement as the SFI cannot provide “double funding”.
For further information or to discuss making a claim, please feel free to contact Kathryn Williams on 07971 583638 email: kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com
Farming Investment Fund – new Slurry Infrastructure grants –COMING IN AUTUMN 2022
The information below is taken from the .Gov website -posted on: 9 June 2022
Today we’re announcing more details about the new slurry storage grants that we will be launching later this year, as part of the Farming Investment Fund.
Every year, farms in England generate and use millions of tonnes of livestock slurry. Slurry contains lots of nutrients and material that can benefit soil health and support crop growth. It can, though, create significant pollution to our environment. Though some farmers have plans, equipment and infrastructure in place to manage the nutrients in their slurry and manure well, others face significant financial barriers to having sufficient slurry storage. This is an area that has not been effectively regulated in the past. As part of the agricultural transition, we want this to change.
We’ve designed the new grant alongside a number of other measures to help livestock farmers make use of their manure and organic nutrients, backed up by better advice and fair, effective regulation of the rules over the agricultural transition period. We are increasing the scope of the Catchment Sensitive Farming service so that it is available across England. We are reviewing all the guidance on GOV.UK so it is as clear as possible. We are also looking into the potential of more nutrient sharing between farms.
The grant reflects the unique nature of investing in slurry storage infrastructure. We’ve drawn on months of co-design to shape it with farmers, industry and environmental experts.
This post gives extra context to the information published today on GOV.UK. We explain what the new grant offers, how to apply and what to look out for over the coming months.
What we’ll offer
The grant will help livestock farmers already using a slurry system to upgrade their slurry storage, to reach 6 months storage capacity and to cover grant funded stores with impermeable covers.
Farmers are obliged to have a minimum of 4 months storage in the Storing silage, slurry and agricultural fuel oil rules; 6 months storage will help farmers go beyond those requirements, meet the Farming rules for water and spread slurries to meet crop needs, rather than wasting them because of a lack of storage.
All pig, dairy and beef farmers already using a slurry system can apply. You can use the grant to:
- replace existing stores that are no longer fit for purpose
- build additional storage, if your current stores are compliant
- expand otherwise compliant storage, for example by adding another ring to a steel tank
You can choose from multiple store types and find one to suit the needs of your farm, including slurry lagoons, steel and concrete ring tanks and rectangular concrete stores.
You must use the grant to reach at least 6 months storage capacity based on your current herd, and the stores must meet regulatory and build standards. You can go beyond 6 months storage capacity but we will cap the grant contribution at 6 months so that we can afford to support more farms to improve their storage to at least that level. You’ll need to maintain 6 months storage capacity on your farm as a condition of the grant funding agreement – meaning you’ll need to take appropriate action if you change your herd size in the future.
All grant funded stores must also be fitted with an impermeable cover. This is an important step to prevent rainfall entering stores and to reduce air pollution. You don’t need to do this if your farm already uses a slurry acidification system that reduces the pH to 6 or below at the point of storage.
Stores that remain part of your compliant storage capacity don’t need to be covered as a condition of the grant. You cannot use the grant to retrofit a cover onto an existing store without also expanding the store in the first round, but you can apply for covers for existing stores under Countryside Stewardship.
Recognising the significant cost of investing in high standard slurry infrastructure, the grant will cover 50% of eligible costs. We’ve also changed the minimum and maximum grant amounts from previous rounds of the Farming Investment Fund: lowering the minimum grant to £25k to help smaller farms and capping the maximum at £250k so we can fund more projects.
We think this offer represents the best use of public money to help farmers upgrade their storage for the long term. We are committed to reviewing the design and scope of the grant for future rounds.
How to apply
As with other themes in the Farming Investment Fund, you can apply through a 2-stage process, starting with an online eligibility checker (opening in the autumn) followed by a full application (over the winter).
This is the first time we have run national slurry storage grants for many years. So, we expect demand to be high. In the first round, if we get more applications than we’re able to fund, we’ll prioritise applications which will have a higher environmental benefit. We will do this by inviting those applicants with projects near protected sites to submit a full application.
There will be multiple opportunities to apply for a grant. So if you aren’t successful this year, we would encourage you to apply again in future rounds which we expect to run over the next few years.
What you can do now
You can start preparing now by:
- planning your storage capacity need
- thinking about what sort of store you might build
- choosing where on the farm to put your store
- checking if you need to apply for planning permission
AHDB will shortly publish an updated version of the Slurry Wizard tool to help you calculate your storage capacity. The Construction Industry Research and Information Association (CIRIA) also produce extensive guidance to help you plan your slurry storage needs, meet regulations and comply with build standards. You can get this resource for free on their website.
If we invite you to make a full application, you will need to give more details. As part of our checks, the Environment Agency will be helping review project plans to check they fit with the rules, and suggest changes, preventing money wasted on detailed planning or construction.
Farmers will also be asked to create and use a nutrient management plan. Further details will be issued about this nearer the time.
For more information or help with your application contact: Kathryn Williams – 07971 583 638 or email
Farming Investment Fund - Adding Value – OPEN NOW
This £30 million fund will offer grants focused on supporting farmers and growers to process, diversify and add-value to their products. It will offer grants of between £25,000 and £300,000 for up to 40% of eligible project costs.
By way of a short introduction, the grants awarded through Adding Value will pay for capital items to enable you to add value to eligible agricultural products, after they’ve been harvested or reared. Details on eligible capital items is contained within the manual. They include:
- equipment for preparing or processing edible agricultural products for added value sales
- equipment for ‘second stage’ processing of grain - for example, colour sorting, blending
- equipment for processing non-edible agricultural products into new products (for example, flax, hemp, wool, hides, and skins)
- equipment for retailing eligible agricultural products (for example, vending machines or display facilities)
- premises for the preparation or processing of added value agricultural products, including associated integral storage areas.
You can apply for a grant if you are:
- a grower or other producer of agricultural products (by which we mean you carry on an agricultural or horticultural activity, including rearing livestock)
- a business processing agricultural or horticultural products which is at least 50% owned by agricultural or horticultural producers.
It is to note that you can apply for more than one theme under the Farming Transformation Fund when the application window opens in June.
If you need further details or would like help with an application, please contact Kathryn Williams on
07971 583638 email: kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com
Forestry Commission Woodland Grants – OPEN ALL YEAR ROUND
Woodland Creation and Maintenance grant
A grant made up of a capital element under which you can apply for support to create a woodland, followed by a maintenance element to maintain it.
You can apply for this grant all year round.
18 capital items are available. The primary item is TE4 (Tree planting).
Click link to find out about payment rates and the rules for the scheme:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/woodland-creation-grant-countryside-stewardship
Woodland Tree Health Grant
Capital grant for farmers and land managers to restock or improve woodland after tree health problems.
You can apply for this capital grant all year round.
The grant is for one-off payments towards the cost of:
- restocking woodland after a tree health problem
- felling diseased trees or rhododendron control
Click link to find out about eligibility, the rules of the scheme and how to apply:
Woodland tree health grant: Countryside Stewardship - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Woodland Management Plan Grant
Capital grant for farmers and land managers to produce a woodland management plan.
You can apply for this grant all year round.
The grant is for financial support to produce a woodland management plan that meets UK Forestry Standard requirements, using capital item PA3.
Your plan must cover a minimum of 10 years.
Click link to find out about eligibility, the rules for the scheme and how to apply:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/woodland-management-plan-grant-countryside-stewardship
For more information please contact Kathryn Williams on 07971 583638 or email:
Farming Transformation Fund - Improving Farm Productivity grant - APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
On the 19th January 2022, DEFRA opened applications for the Improving Farm Productivity (IFP) theme of the Farming Transformation Fund (FTF).
The Improving Farm Productivity theme sits alongside the two other themes within the FTF, namely Water Management (launched in November 2021) and the Adding Value theme that will focus on food production (anticipated launch date Spring 2022).
The IFP grant will be a 2 step application process. Firstly applicants must apply through the online eligibility checker. This will be open from 19/1/2022 – 16/3/2022. Those applicants that are then invited by DEFRA to make a full application will have until the 14th September 2022 to make the full application. If planning permission is required, this must be in place by the 31st December 2022.
The IFP is open to farmers, growers and related contractors. The project must be in England and if a contractor applies, their registered business must be in England and you can only use the grant for buying robotics and innovative farming equipment.
The minimum grant is £35,000 and the maximum grant is £500,000. The grant will fund 40% of eligible costs and therefore the minimum project cost will be £87,500.
The grant will fund capital items to improve farm and horticulture productivity through innovative farming equipment that increases productivity and improves the environment.
What the grant is for:
1. Slurry treatment equipment
The grant can pay up to 40% of the costs for:
- mild acidification equipment (all projects must buy acid storage, dosing equipment, mixing tank and pump)
- acidification infrastructure (for example, any work to adapt or install pipework, pumps etc to get slurry into the acidification system and then out to storage)
2. Robotics and innovation equipment
Subject to item specifications, the grant can pay up to 40% of the costs for:
- robotic harvesting equipment
- robotic weeding equipment
- robotic spraying equipment
- autonomous driverless tractors or platforms
- voluntary robotic milking system
- robotic feeding systems
- robotic transplanting
- advanced ventilation control units
- wavelength specific LED lighting for horticultural crops
For more information on the IFP grant follow this link to the manual. The manual contains a list of eligible capital items. Farming Transformation Fund Improving Farm Productivity grant manual (publishing.service.gov.uk) or contact Kathryn Williams at Davis Meade Property Consultants
Email: kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com
Farming in Protected Landscapes – Shropshire AONB Grant - APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
Defra launched the Farming in Protected Landscapes fund in July 2021. The programme will run to April 2024 and is aimed at farmers and land managers in England’s Protected Landscapes (AONBs and National Parks).
Kathryn Williams of Davis Meade Property Consultants has recently been appointed to the Farming in Protected Landscapes Shropshire Hills AONB Partnership panel.
Farmers and land managers can apply for grants for projects to provide benefits to one or preferably more of the following categories:- climate, nature, people and place on land in the Shropshire Hills AONB;
Climate
- More carbon is stored and/or sequestered
- Flood risk is reduced
- Farmers, land managers and the public better understand what different habitats and land uses can store carbon and reduce carbon emissions
- The landscape is more resilient to climate change
Nature
- There is a greater area of habitat improved for biodiversity
- There is an increase in biodiversity
- There is greater connectivity between habitats
- Existing habitat is better managed
People
- There are more opportunities for people to explore, enjoy and understand the landscape
- There are more opportunities for more diverse audiences to explore, enjoy and understand the landscape
- There is greater public engagement in land management, such as through volunteering
- Farmers and land managers feel increasingly comfortable with providing public goods
Place
- The quality and character of the landscape is reinforced or enhanced
- Historic structures and features are conserved, enhanced or interpreted more effectively
- There is an increase in farm business resilience
Who can apply?
Applications will be accepted from farmers and land managers within an AONB or National Park in England, or the Norfolk Broads. The programme may also support activity on other land where that activity can demonstrate benefit to the Protected Landscape, or the Protected Landscape organisation’s objectives or partnership initiatives. Your Farming in Protected Landscapes adviser can advise on whether your land / project is eligible.
What costs can I apply for?
Maximum grant allowance
The maximum grant you can apply for through this programme is £250,000 for a single project although we will only go up to this limit for projects offering exceptional outputs and value for money. We envisage most projects will be in the range £5,000 - £100,000.
Minimum grant allowance
The minimum grant allowance for the Farming in Protected Landscapes Programme in the Shropshire Hills AONB 2021/22 is £3,000. This may change in subsequent years of the programme.
When can I apply?
For the first year of funding, you can apply from 1st July 2021 – 31st January 2022. You can submit your application at any time during this window, though as funding is limited early applications are encouraged.
If you would like further information on the grant fund, please feel free to contact Kathryn Williams via kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com or visit the Shropshire AONB website.
Severn Trent Water - STEPS Grant - APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
The STEPS grant schemes offer farmers and land managers, both owners and tenants, financial and technical support, to invest in tailored solutions to help tackle diffuse water pollution and to protect and maintain biodiversity and the natural environment.
STEPS for protecting water quality has been running since 2015, and have awarded more than 1,900 grants for projects including:
- cover crops
- pesticide washdown areas
- biofilters
Eligibility for STEPS
You can apply for the main STEPS options all year round. Applications close on Monday 31 January 2022.
To be eligible for support from STEPS, you must:
- farm or have land in a priority catchment in the Severn Trent region
- actively farm the land
Severn Trent will match-fund up to £10,000 per application.
For more information please contact Kathryn Williams on 07971 583638 or email: kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com
Marches Small Business Recovery Grant - APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
A new £630,000 grant scheme to help small businesses across the Marches which have suffered as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic has been launched.
Grants of between £1,000 and £3,000 are available through the Marches Small Business Recovery Grant, which will help both tourism businesses and those in the wider economy.
Only small businesses in Telford & Wrekin, Shropshire and Herefordshire (the Marches area) with up to ten full-time employees and who can demonstrate a negative impact due to the coronavirus crisis are able to apply.
The grants will be available for projects running between November and January. Costs can cover specialist advice – including HR, accountancy, legal, financial, health and safety, IT/digital and sector-related consultancy – and/or equipment to address immediate needs in response to Covid-19.
Applications will open on Wednesday 14th October at 9am so please take the opportunity to review the information initially provided on the dedicated website at www.marcheslep.org.uk/marches-business-recovery-grant-launched/ around eligibility and what’s needed in order to prepare and make a successful application.
The money is drawn from the European Regional Development Fund. Established by the European Union, the European Regional Development Fund helps local areas stimulate their economic development by investing in projects which will support innovation, businesses, create jobs and local community regenerations.
For further information contact Kathryn Williams on 07971 583638 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com
The Farming Investment Fund - APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
The Farming Investment fund opened this week on Tuesday 16th November.
Farmers, foresters and growers from across England can apply for grants to buy new equipment and infrastructure to help to improve efficiency. This could include solar powered electric fences, water treatment systems that use ultraviolet light rather than chemicals and cameras for monitoring livestock.
The fund will be split across two strands. Firstly, the Farming Equipment and Technology Fund will focus on smaller grants for equipment from a set list including mobile sheep dips, automated footbaths for cattle and EID recording devices to name but a few. Please note the deadline for this window of applications is midday on 7th January 2022. The link to the manual which includes all the information is: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/farming-equipment-and-technology-fund-round-1-manual
Secondly, the Farming Transformation Fund will cover more substantial technology, with the potential to transform business performance. This strand will focus initially on water management with grants available to improve water use on farms for things like crops irrigation and constructing on-farm reservoirs. If you are applying for this you will need to complete the initial online application through the online checker before 12th January 2022. Projects with the best fit with the priorities will then be invited to submit a full application (deadline 30th June 2022). Items funded will include irrigation systems and on-farm reservoirs. For further information and guidance please follow this link https://www.gov.uk/guidance/farming-transformation-fund-water-management-grant-manual
For more information on the above, please contact Kathryn Williams at Davis Meade.
kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com / 07971 583 638
CS Capital Grants - APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
Applications for CS Capital Grants open on 9 February 2021 and close on 30 April 2021.
Capital Grants offers 67 standalone capital items within 3 groups:
• Boundaries, Tress and Orchards
• Water Quality
• Air Quality
The aim is to protect and enhance the natural environment by increasing biodiversity, boosting habitats and improving water and air quality.
Countryside Stewardship agreements will continue to be offered in 2022, 2023 and 2024. This includes capital grants.
Countryside Stewardship will eventually be replaced with the new Environmental Land Management scheme. This will follow trialling and testing and a national pilot involving farmers and land managers. The full Environmental Land Management scheme will be in place from 2024.
Countryside Stewardship Capital Grants are for a maximum of 2 years. Agreements will start from the first of the month after we’ve completed our checks. The exact start date of the agreement will be set out in the Agreement Document.
he maximum total amount of funding for any application has increased from £10,000 to £60,000 but there is a limit of £20,000 for each of the 3 groups.
You can only submit one application for each farm business (that is a single business identifier (SBI) connected to a farm business).
You may need to keep evidence and provide it when requested. Check Countryside Stewardship grants for the evidence and record-keeping requirements of grants before you apply for them.
For more advice please contact Kathryn Williams on 07971583638 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com
Countryside Productivity Small Grant Scheme Round 3 – APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
The CPSG provides investment towards specific items of equipment which will improve productivity and efficiency for farming and horticultural businesses. Please read the guidance carefully to decide whether the items under this scheme meet the investment plans for your business, and if you qualify for support.
Full guidance is in the online handbook - https://www.gov.uk/guidance/countryside-productivity-small-grant-cpsg-scheme-round-3 (which you can read online or download and print out). It explains what Round 3 of the CPSG grant is for, who is eligible, how to apply and if successful, how to claim.
You must submit your application using the online portal by noon on 4th November 2020. Applications cannot be submitted after this date.
For further information contact Kathryn Williams on 07971 583638 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com
Farming Recovery Fund Extension 2020 – re flooding in February 2020 - APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
The Farming Recovery Fund is now open for applications from farmers whose land was flooded in February 2020, and who are located in parts of: Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, East and North Yorkshire, and a further extension in Nottinghamshire, Worcestershire & Gloucestershire.
Details of the eligible areas, The Handbook and How to Apply are all available at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/farming-recovery-fund-extension-2020
All work must meet the specifications set out in the handbook.
Deadline for submitting applications is 1st Sept 2020.
For further information contact Kathryn Williams on 07971 583638 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com
Dairy Support Scheme - APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
The Dairy Support Scheme is now open and will close on 11th September 2020
Since the start of the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, the dairy industry has faced challenges of excess milk, falling prices, and reduced demand from the hospitality sector. Defra has set up a fund to help those dairy farmers most in need in England overcome the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. The new funding will help support dairy farmers who have seen decreased demand for their products as bars, restaurants and cafes have had to close.
With some dairy farmers facing financial difficulties and excess milk, the new fund will provide support to help them continue to operate and sustain production capacity without impacts on animal welfare by helping cover ongoing costs. These funds will be allocated to those most in need (see section 2 ‘Who can apply’). Eligible dairy farmers will be entitled to up to £10,000 each. The amount of payment will be calculated on around 70% of their losses from actual milk sales during April and May (see section 7 ‘Payments’).
The fund will be administered by the Rural Payments Agency (RPA). All payments received through the fund are made under s.8 of the Industrial Development Act 1982 (as amended) and the Covid-19 Temporary State Aid Framework for UK Public Authorities (as amended)
Who is eligible?
If you are a cross-border farmer with land in another part of the UK as well as in England, you may apply if the majority of your land is located in England and you received your Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) 2019 payment from RPA.
You can apply for this scheme if both of the following apply:
- you supply cows milk to a wholesale purchaser
- you have had a reduction in the average price paid for your milk of 25% or more in April 2020 compared to that paid in February 2020
Payments will not be made for May losses alone.
How and When to Apply
You can only make one application for each business registered with RPA.
We must receive your application by midnight on Friday 11th September. We cannot accept late applications.
All Dairy Response Fund payments are discretionary and there is no automatic entitlement to any payment. We will email you or write to you within 7 working days of verifying your application to tell you whether it has been accepted or rejected.
For more information or to apply for the grant please contact Kathryn Williams on 07971 583638 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com
Countryside Productivity Small Grants Scheme Round 2 APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
The Countryside Productivity Small Grant Scheme provides funding for farmers to purchase equipment to improve the productivity of their farm. This scheme is only open to farmers based in England.
Farmers can apply for funding towards specific items of equipment listed at Annex 3 of the Countryside Productivity Small Grants Scheme Round 2 handbook.
Full details and guidance at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/countryside-productivity-scheme
All the items have been identified following consultation with industry groups and suppliers as helping achieve improvements in either:
• technical efficiency
• animal health and welfare
• resource efficiency, or
• nutrient management
Who can apply:
Farmers in England (including livestock, dairy, arable and horticultural sectors) can apply for this grant.
Application forms must be completed online before the deadline of September 3rd.
For further advice or help with an application contact Kathryn Williams 07971 583638 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com
Countryside Stewardship APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
The Countryside Stewardship scheme has opened for farmers and land managers to request application packs, for agreements to start in 2019.
Four simpler, and quicker to apply for, offers are being introduced this year to complement the existing Higher Tier and Mid Tier offers and to open up the scheme to even more farmers and land managers. Unlike existing offers, all landowners who make a valid application for any of the four new packages will be guaranteed funding through the scheme. This application window is an opportunity for farmers new to Countryside Stewardship (CS), or those coming out of previous stewardship agreements, to sign up for an agreement that will be guaranteed for its lifetime, to protect wildlife, boost biodiversity and deliver environmental benefits for their local communities.
Farmers and land managers have until 31 May 2019 to request a paper application pack. Farmers intending to apply online this year will be able to create their Online Arable Offer application pack from 20 February 2019.
The deadline for all applications is 31 July 2019.
Water Grants APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED
This forms part of the Countryside Stewardship Scheme (CSS) Mid-Tier Grants are open for applications until 31st July 2019. Water Grants (previously Catchment Sensitive Farming capital grant scheme)- up to £10,000 is available for standalone grants to complete works to improve water quality, e.g. concreting yards, covering handling areas. To be eligible you need to be located within a priority catchment and gain approval for the desired works from your local Catchment Farming Officer.
