Rabi drought fund swamped within hours
© geogphotos/Alamy Stock Photo A £2m emergency drought fund for farmers has been fully allocated in its first regional phase, after demand for support saw the £400,000 South West allocation fully subscribed within an hour of opening.
The Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution (Rabi) opened applications at midday on Monday 7 September for up to 200 grants worth £2,000 each in the South West.
See also: Drought-hit farmers offered £2,000 emergency grants
The grants are intended to help with personal and household living costs, rather than farm operating expenses, and are available to eligible farm owners and tenant farmers facing financial hardship.
The South West Phase 1 covered Devon, Cornwall, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire and eligible areas of Gloucestershire.
Although applications were due to remain open until Friday 11 September, Rabi has confirmed the funding was fully allocated and the application portal closed early.
The speed of the take-up highlights the financial pressure facing farming households as drought conditions continue to hit incomes and increase costs.
The experience has also raised questions among English farmers about potential demand when the next window of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) opens on 22 September.
SFI26 Window 2 has £230m available, with agreements capped at £100,000 per farm business. The government has increased the overall SFI26 budget by £50m to £290m.
Rabi chief executive Alicia Chivers said: “Demand for the first phase of Rabi’s Emergency Drought Grants was, as forecast, exceptionally high, with the £400,000 South West allocation fully subscribed within an hour of opening.”
She added that each successful applicant would receive £2,000 to help ease personal and household financial pressures resulting from the prolonged dry weather.
“We recognise that some people will inevitably be disappoointed that they were unable to apply before the allocation was reached,” said Ms Chivers.
Next phases
Rabi’s next funding phase, covering Wales, will open for applications at 12pm on 14 September and run until 18 September.
Subsequent regional funding phases will follow in the South East from 21 to 25 September, the East from 28 September to 2 October, and the Midlands from 5 to 9 October.
Farmers seeking advice can contact Rabi’s 24-hour helpline on 0800 188 4444.
Information on the remaining four regional phases is available through Rabi’s drought support page.
