Environmental Stewardship - 1 Jul 2007

If you are not on Entry Level Stewardship yet, join soon as there are rumours it may become more competitive as the Government's funds become stretched. Higher Level Stewardship is still as competitive as ever, however if you have enough features of interest on your farm you should seriously consider it.

Environmental Stewardship: Sign Up Or Lose Out

Natural England, the agency that has looked after agri-environment schemes since 2006, have reported that as the Entry Level Scheme is not delivering the results that they hoped for, they are considering making it more competitive and targeted at certain areas of the countryside. This will be similar to the way that the Higher Level Scheme is run.

Because of this, farmers should look to join the Entry Level Scheme as soon as possible, to take advantage of the current ‘broad and shallow’ route to funding. There are several new funding schemes and other grants arriving in 2008, so this proposed tightening of entry criteria could come very soon.

Surprisingly only 46% of farmers in our region have joined ELS so far, it is time the other 54% followed suit, before the bar is raised. At present the funding is there, is non competitive, and has not been allocated against any other scheme.

As regards Higher Level Stewardship prospects, Natural England have decided to actively approach those holdings in target areas, literally cold calling businesses. They are starting to realize now that the agreements they offer farmers have to work with the business, as there has always been an uneasy balance between environmental benefit and farm economics.

Entry Level Stewardship:

You will get paid £30 for every hectare on your holding, provided it is not in an existing agri-environment scheme, such as Countryside Stewardship or Woodland Grant Scheme. You need to achieve 30 points for every hectare on your holding in order to gain access to ELS funds.

It is a five year scheme, with no opt out clause, so if you sell up the buyer needs to take on your obligation, or you need to pay the money back. If an unforeseen event occurs during the agreement, then you can negotiate with Natural England to avoid repayment. Once you have been accepted into the scheme you will get paid automatically every six months, there is no need to submit claim forms.

Predominantly grass and livestock farmers should be able to gain these points by using Low Input Grass options, which allow you to spread a small amount of Nitrogen, or none at all in very low input options, and as much muck as you like.

Those who do not have extensive grass available can use hedge and ditch management, buffer strips and management plans to help achieve enough points. There really is no excuse!

There are of course many other options available to gain points, please do contact us if you would like advice.

Higher Level Stewardship:

The very first thing to do when considering HLS is to investigate which JCA your holding falls into. JCA stands for Joint Character Area, and unfortunately the areas do not correspond to county or parish lines. The Natural England website has an interactive map to help you work out where you are, or we have a large countrywide map in the office.

Once you know which JCA you are in, you should read the targets for that particular area. If you have a SSSI on your holding, significant habitats, historical sites or county wildlife sites, these will all bring you closer to being approved for HLS. Of course – if Natural England has already contacted you, then you know you stand a good chance of being accepted.

The next step is to visit your Natural England local office for a meeting. Applications that are received by Natural England where there has been no initial meeting will NOT receive the FEP payment.  Equally, if your application is not up to scratch you will also not receive the FEP payment.

FEP payments:

This is a payment you would receive in return for applying to HLS. As long as you have had a meeting with Natural England to make sure that an application is worthwhile you will receive this payment. The amount you receive is linked to the size of your holding and is intended to help towards any professional fees you may have incurred putting your application together.

Natural England Offices:

Appointments and what you need to take with you: The local offices can be found on the Natural England website, www.naturalengland.org.uk.

You will need to take with you as much information as you can find concerning environmental features on your farm. A map with features outlined is helpful, and any survey information from third parties. Look in the purple HLS Farm Environment Plan book for ideas of what features will be of most interest.

During the meeting you can describe your farm, and what you are interested in achieving, the Natural England advisor can then let you know whether you have sufficient points of interest to make it worth your while applying. Make sure you are making it clear which targets your farm reaches.

Funding:

The Higher Level Scheme does not pay out on a whole farm basis, more of a field by field approach. If only a part of your farm has sufficient environmental interest, then it will be just that part of the farm that an agreement is offered on. Payments vary according to whether the item is a long term management option, or a one off capital project.

If you are interested in HLS, please contact us at the office, we would be happy to discuss your business and options with you.

BE AWARE:

Entry Level Stewardship Schemes WILL be inspected during a Cross Compliance visit. The RPA will look at various elements, including management plans. If you have used management plans to gain enough points to enter the scheme, then you should make sure you have them available for inspection. You do have the first twelve months of the scheme to complete management plans, but that is no reason to leave it until the last minute!

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