Countryside Stewardship Mid-Tier – What is new for 2023?
Applications are now open for Countryside Stewardship Mid-Tier with the deadline for applications being 18th August 2023.
Countryside Stewardship is a great way to top up some of the income lost from declining BPS payments. We are continuing to work with farmers and landowners to design schemes to complement their existing farming systems, which can support farms both economically and environmentally.
The revenue and capital payment rates for agreements were reviewed at the start of the year, with a significant number of those payment rates increasing! Therefore, it is great opportunity for farms to explore the options and provide a boost to the overall farming business income.
Countryside Stewardship will continue to be available for the foreseeable future, as Local Nature Recovery (within Environmental Land Management Schemes) will no longer be going ahead. The RPA have confirmed that applications for Countryside Stewardship will however, be assessed on a first come first served basis. Land must also be correct on the RPA service before starting a Countryside Stewardship application online, therefore notification of any changes must be made as soon as possible.
In line with the recent announcement of 2023 Capital Grants, Mid-Tier agreements will also follow suit in that you now have 3 years to complete capital works, as opposed to 2 years. There will be no limit to the value of capital items, but the application will undergo a value for money assessment.
The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) continues to progress in the Standards available, however, there is still some detail lacking in how the SFI standards will complement each other. This has made it somewhat difficult to assess SFI as an option for farms, whereas Countryside Stewardship provides us with all of the management detail required to plan for the next 5 years.
To discuss the options available to your farm through any of the schemes mentioned above, get in touch with a member of the team.
Charlie Davies
07904 601104
charlie@kellyfarmconsulting.com
Laura Cureton
07399 117257
laura@kellyfarmconsulting.com
Sam Kelly
07777 696080
sam@kellyfarmconsulting.com
Office 01454 614624