HomeINCREASE IN PAYMENTS FOR GRASSLAND
This relatively new grant is designed to replace the Basic Payment Scheme which is decreasing annually until it ends in 2027.
The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) was available to claim in 2022 with some basic standards on which grant could be claimed. In 2023 the elements that could be claimed increased and a new version of the scheme is available for applications from March 2024.
Eligibility
Initially you need to be/have been eligible for Basic Payment Scheme(BPS) in either May 2022 or May 2023.
This requirement is widely expected to change in the summer of 2024, removing the link to BPS. This will open the scheme up to those areas that did not have any entitlement to claim under BPS, but the business and land must first be registered and mapped with the Rural Payments Agency (RPA).
Standards
There are now a number of “standards” that can be included in a claim, and many of these are suitable for grassland and in particular stud land.
The RPA have rationalized the application process, so that unlike the former scheme a business can apply at any time of the year with payments being made quarterly. The scheme is still developing, with the intention being to add standards that fulfill the objectives. The basic intention is that the scheme will “reward farmers for managing their land in an environmentally sustainable way.”
The initial standards address:
Soil management
Hedgerows
Pest management
Nutrient management
Farmland wildlife
Buffer strips
Low input grassland
All the above are relevant to grassland and each element attracts grant payments.
Actions
In order to claim under the scheme there is a basic requirement to undertake soil tests to establish soil organic matter levels and basic nutrient levels.
Further reports such as a herbage analysis and report will enable further standards to be claimed.
More detailed mapping of properties is required in order to register areas that were not mapped under the previous grant system. In the case of new applicants to the Rural Payments Agency registration of the business and preparation of maps will be necessary.
Payments
We estimate that the majority of grazing land will be eligible to claim a minimum of £155 per acre.
Additional payments will depend on individual features on the land such as hedges, but we also advise mapping woodland which may be eligible for certain standards either now or in the future.
Our Service
Keylocks will undertake to prepare necessary mapping including registration of land, advise on the available standards and implantation of any necessary management action, and prepare and submit a claim for the business.
We will monitor the progress of the Scheme as it develops and advise on any further standards that are introduced that may result in grant payments.
The objective of the scheme is to manage land with the environment as a priority, and we are able to advise with a background of specialist knowledge of stud management.
Contact
Please contact us for any further information or if you would like us to arrange to meet on site.