The next application window for the Countryside Stewardship (CS) scheme is now open, providing a chance for more farmers and land managers in England to prepare for the future and receive payment for environmental work.

Through CS, farmers can apply for funding to improve their local environment – from restoring wildlife habitats and creating woodlands to managing flood risk. Following work carried out with industry, changes have been made to this year’s scheme to broaden the options available and make it easier to apply, eg:

  • New options to help improve air quality, reduce ammonia emissions and improve water quality.
  • An improved Countryside Stewardship capital grant offer, making 67 options available which can sit alongside a Countryside Stewardship Wildlife offer.
  • New wood pasture options in the uplands, at payment rates suitable for upland application, providing a mosaic habitat of grassland, scrub and trees.
  • The Countryside Stewardship capital offer to be available to Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) agreement holders, where the options are compatible.
  • Improved woodland options, including bringing bracken control and stone wall options into woodland management and combining Woodland Creation and Woodland Maintenance grants.
  • Increased number of capital items that farmers can apply for using the Rural Payments service, covering water capital, hedgerows and boundaries and air quality.

Farmers and land managers who are new to taking on environmental work or with expired or expiring Environmental Stewardship agreements can apply for:

  • Mid-Tier – Farmers and land managers can enter five-year agreements – for revenue and capital payments and Wildlife Offer revenue-only agreements. These grants will provide a range of management options and capital items together in order to help deliver on a range of environmental benefits. The deadline for applications is 31 July 2021.
  • Higher Tier – Applicants managing more complex land in environmentally significant sites, commons or woodlands which requires support from Natural England or the Forestry Commission. These are five or 10-year agreements. The deadline for applications is 30 April 2021.

CS will eventually be replaced with the new Environmental Land Management (ELM) scheme and by entering an agreement now, farmers will be best-placed to benefit from the new agricultural policy once it is fully rolled out in 2024.

Farming Minister Victoria Prentis said:

'We are guaranteeing that anyone who enters a new Countryside Stewardship agreement will be able to leave early in order to join the Environmental Land Management scheme once fully rolled out in 2024.'