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Know How / Environmental schemes

Each of the UK’s devolved administrations has its own agri-environment scheme – for example, the Countryside Stewardship Scheme in England and the Agri-environment Climate Scheme in Scotland.

Find out what’s involved in signing up to a ‘green scheme’ and get practical tips on putting together your application.

Advice and tips

PAYMENTS, SCHEMES AND GRANTS

Advice on preparing early for new grant funding applications

A new round of standalone Countryside Stewardship (CS) Capital Grants 2025-26 will open this summer worth £45m and funding a significant proportion of the cost of a wide range of…

ENVIRONMENTAL SCHEMES

A guide to staying SFI compliant

Unlike more rigid support schemes of the past, the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) is all about giving farmers greater flexibility to make actions work for their farm, while simultaneously delivering…

ARABLE

Tips on achieving healthy hedgerows on farm

Hedges are a defining feature of our countryside and one of the best habitats for wildlife on any farm.  Far more than being a boundary, they also support farm business…

ENVIRONMENTAL SCHEMES

Nutrient mitigation market merits careful consideration

Headlines about housebuilding being held up by environmental measures have abated to some extent, but the need to ensure that new development does not increase the nitrogen and phosphate loading…

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Case studies

CROP MANAGEMENT

How growers returned environmental schemes back to cropping

Land in environmental stewardship schemes returning to the arable rotation must be managed carefully to avoid unintended weed burdens. We talk to two growers about how they have managed the…

ARABLE

Suffolk farm faces tough decisions on environmental measures

Farmers are facing tough decisions on the future of environmental measures, as the Countryside Stewardship (CS) scheme will end by December this year and the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) is…

ARABLE

How an award-winning arable farm combines business and nature

Bedingham Hall Farm near Bungay is maximising its environmental conservation, while remaining committed to profitable food production. It has done this by making full use of the natural features available…

OTHER CROPS

How Cornish mixed farm gains from regen stacking

Cornish farmer David Oates is set to see more money coming in from stacking regenerative actions on his mixed family farm than from the old Basic Payment Scheme subsidy. He…

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Insights

ARABLE

How environmental schemes are affecting UK arable area

The balance between food production and environmental schemes continues to be a major discussion, particularly as just over half of farms in England reduced cropping for harvest 2025 to take…

ENVIRONMENTAL SCHEMES

New £150m capital grant scheme – act quickly to secure funds

The sudden removal of capital grants last autumn for farmers in England – without the promised six-weeks’ notice –  was just one of a number of shocks farmers have had…

FARM POLICY

How the Ffermio Bro agri-environment scheme is bedding in

The Welsh government’s agri-environmental scheme for its designated landscapes and national parks – called Ffermio Bro – has started in earnest since its launch in April. Aiming to encourage nature-friendly…

ENVIRONMENTAL SCHEMES

How private cash is funding environmental measures

A system to pay for nature-based measures to address shared challenges along the supply chain is benefiting both funders and farmers in a wide range of landscapes. Landscape Enterprise Networks…

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News

FARM POLICY

Ffermio Bro scheme oversubscribed as demand surges

Ffermio Bro, the Welsh government’s new agri-environment scheme for its designated landscapes and national parks, has reached capacity with funding for the current round exceeded. The scheme, which launched in earnest…

ENVIRONMENTAL SCHEMES

Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier to open for applications

Defra has confirmed that applications for Higher Tier Countryside Stewardship (CS) are due to open this week, with a supposedly simpler online application process. More than 1,500 farm businesses and…

AGRICULTURAL TRANSITION

English farmers face funding gap as CS agreements expire

More than 5,500 Countryside Stewardship (CS) agreements across England are set to expire between July 2025 and March 2026, leaving thousands of farmers at risk of losing vital environmental funding.…

ENVIRONMENTAL SCHEMES

Deadline looms to submit SFI 2024 applications

Farmers in England who still wish to claim support under the 2024 Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) have until Monday 18 August to submit their applications. The 2024 SFI, which pays…

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