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How the UK’s 2024 Budget Affects Landowners and Nature Recovery Projects
A summary of the UK’s 2024 budget cuts and tax changes, and how it will affect landowners.Plus some very practical strategies for how to deal with them.
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Explore the financial incentives for landowners and farmers offered by the UK’s environmental programmes, and how they support sustainable land use.
Landowners, farmers, and estate managers in the United Kingdom can benefit from financial incentives, technical support, and guidance via a whole host of programmes aimed to promote sustainable land use and biodiversity. These programmes help to manage land in a manner beneficial for the environment, society, and the economy. This article is a brief summary of the key environmental initiatives in the UK. It will focus on:
We will also introduce other important initiatives such as the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO), and the Woodland Carbon Guarantee (WCaG).
Environmental Land Management (ELM) is a major improvement for the UK in how landowners and farmers receive incentives to contribute to the common good. This means ELM is a replacement for the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). The common good of course would be environmental benefits such as clean air and water, greater biodiversity, combating climate change, and for some—no longer having to call it CAP.
ELM consists of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), Local Nature Recovery, and Landscape Recovery. These three main components create a comprehensive framework for sustainable land management.
The SFI incentivises farmers to adopt and use environmentally friendly and productive agricultural methods. In 2024 alone for example, the SFI introduced nearly 50 new tools and actions, such as precision farming, and agroforestry. As a result, payment rates increased by an average of 10%, demonstrating the SFI’s greater flexibility and accessibility, along with its higher participation rate.
Local Nature Recovery supports just that: local nature recovery, such as initiatives that improve natural habitats and their recovery on a local scale. LNR promotes co-operation for restoring ecosystems, establishing new woodlands, and improving water quality. It also supports actions and networks that are crucial for the general well-being of wildlife and ecosystems.
Landscape Recovery is designed for implementing large-scale changes in land use and habitat restoration, for example creating new wilderness and wetlands. With the aim of restoring natural processes and improving larger areas of land, these projects naturally require a longer-term commitment.
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ELM is integrated with existing programmes such as Countryside Stewardship (CS) and the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO). This is to provide a streamlined procedure that landowners and farmers only need to apply for once.
Countryside Stewardship (CS) is a programme that protects and improves the natural environment by offering farmers, foresters, and land managers financial incentives. It supports a range of activities promoting biodiversity, expanding woodlands, and improving air and water quality.
CS is a support measure for the UK’s 25-Year Environment Plan, which aims to make the country "the healthiest and most beautiful place in the world to live, work, and bring up a family". Key objectives include:
CS provides various grants with amounts based on the types of activities they’re for:
Capital Grants focus on improvements such as boundaries, trees, orchards, air and water quality, and flood management. They are available for three years.
These are grants offering additional environmental benefits, and are tailored for more complex land management situations and projects.
Landowners can easily use the CS grant finder to find suitable grants. Some grant applications are open year-round, while others have specific application periods.
The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) focuses on making environmental programmes more accessible and attractive. It encourages sustainable practices that enhance soil health, water quality, and biodiversity.
SFI promotes environmentally beneficial practices that also maintain agricultural productivity. Key objectives include:
SFI provides farmers with a range of activities that can be tailored to their specific circumstances. Payments will reflect the complexity of these actions:
Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) is a relatively new requirement under UK planning policy. It aims to ensure that all new developments have a measurable increase in biodiversity. BNG requires developers to measure the “biodiversity value” of a site before and after development, so that any loss is compensated by creating or enhancing habitats elsewhere.
BNG aims to:
BNG provides landowners with direct financial benefits when they create or enhance habitats on their land. This is done in the form of BNG credits, which can be sold to developers needing to offset biodiversity losses elsewhere. The value of these credits is based on habitat type and developer demand, but payments can range from several thousand to tens of thousands of pounds per hectare.
The England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) is a flagship programme that supports new woodland creation by covering overhead, and it also provides annual maintenance payments.
EWCO aims to:
EWCO offers financial support, including:
The Woodland Carbon Guarantee (WCaG) is a £50 million incentive programme intended to speed up woodland creation. The idea is for permanent removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. WCaG provides landowners with an option for verified carbon credits, which can be sold to the government at a guaranteed price every five to ten years, until 2055/56.
WCaG aims to:
WCaG offers:
These UK environmental programmes—Environmental Land Management (ELM), Countryside Stewardship (CS), the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), and Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG)—provide a complete framework that promotes sustainable land use, and biodiversity enhancement. These programmes offer landowners and farmers significant financial incentives. Depending on the actions and environmental outcomes, the potential monetary values can range from hundreds to thousands of pounds per hectare.
What’s more, the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) and Woodland Carbon Guarantee (WCaG) offer landowners and farmers substantial support for woodland creation and carbon sequestration. Landowners can contribute to a healthier environment for everyone by enhancing biodiversity and supporting the UK’s efforts to tackle climate change simply by participating in these programmes. Doing so also provides financial rewards for their environmental stewardship. You can expect future articles here that will explore specific grants and initiatives in greater detail, providing you with detailed information that will help you with nature recovery efforts on your land.
Explore the financial incentives for landowners and farmers offered by the UK’s environmental programmes, and how they support sustainable land use.
Landowners, farmers, and estate managers in the United Kingdom can benefit from financial incentives, technical support, and guidance via a whole host of programmes aimed to promote sustainable land use and biodiversity. These programmes help to manage land in a manner beneficial for the environment, society, and the economy. This article is a brief summary of the key environmental initiatives in the UK. It will focus on:
We will also introduce other important initiatives such as the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO), and the Woodland Carbon Guarantee (WCaG).
Environmental Land Management (ELM) is a major improvement for the UK in how landowners and farmers receive incentives to contribute to the common good. This means ELM is a replacement for the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). The common good of course would be environmental benefits such as clean air and water, greater biodiversity, combating climate change, and for some—no longer having to call it CAP.
ELM consists of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), Local Nature Recovery, and Landscape Recovery. These three main components create a comprehensive framework for sustainable land management.
The SFI incentivises farmers to adopt and use environmentally friendly and productive agricultural methods. In 2024 alone for example, the SFI introduced nearly 50 new tools and actions, such as precision farming, and agroforestry. As a result, payment rates increased by an average of 10%, demonstrating the SFI’s greater flexibility and accessibility, along with its higher participation rate.
Local Nature Recovery supports just that: local nature recovery, such as initiatives that improve natural habitats and their recovery on a local scale. LNR promotes co-operation for restoring ecosystems, establishing new woodlands, and improving water quality. It also supports actions and networks that are crucial for the general well-being of wildlife and ecosystems.
Landscape Recovery is designed for implementing large-scale changes in land use and habitat restoration, for example creating new wilderness and wetlands. With the aim of restoring natural processes and improving larger areas of land, these projects naturally require a longer-term commitment.
_________________
ELM is integrated with existing programmes such as Countryside Stewardship (CS) and the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO). This is to provide a streamlined procedure that landowners and farmers only need to apply for once.
Countryside Stewardship (CS) is a programme that protects and improves the natural environment by offering farmers, foresters, and land managers financial incentives. It supports a range of activities promoting biodiversity, expanding woodlands, and improving air and water quality.
CS is a support measure for the UK’s 25-Year Environment Plan, which aims to make the country "the healthiest and most beautiful place in the world to live, work, and bring up a family". Key objectives include:
CS provides various grants with amounts based on the types of activities they’re for:
Capital Grants focus on improvements such as boundaries, trees, orchards, air and water quality, and flood management. They are available for three years.
These are grants offering additional environmental benefits, and are tailored for more complex land management situations and projects.
Landowners can easily use the CS grant finder to find suitable grants. Some grant applications are open year-round, while others have specific application periods.
The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) focuses on making environmental programmes more accessible and attractive. It encourages sustainable practices that enhance soil health, water quality, and biodiversity.
SFI promotes environmentally beneficial practices that also maintain agricultural productivity. Key objectives include:
SFI provides farmers with a range of activities that can be tailored to their specific circumstances. Payments will reflect the complexity of these actions:
Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) is a relatively new requirement under UK planning policy. It aims to ensure that all new developments have a measurable increase in biodiversity. BNG requires developers to measure the “biodiversity value” of a site before and after development, so that any loss is compensated by creating or enhancing habitats elsewhere.
BNG aims to:
BNG provides landowners with direct financial benefits when they create or enhance habitats on their land. This is done in the form of BNG credits, which can be sold to developers needing to offset biodiversity losses elsewhere. The value of these credits is based on habitat type and developer demand, but payments can range from several thousand to tens of thousands of pounds per hectare.
The England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) is a flagship programme that supports new woodland creation by covering overhead, and it also provides annual maintenance payments.
EWCO aims to:
EWCO offers financial support, including:
The Woodland Carbon Guarantee (WCaG) is a £50 million incentive programme intended to speed up woodland creation. The idea is for permanent removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. WCaG provides landowners with an option for verified carbon credits, which can be sold to the government at a guaranteed price every five to ten years, until 2055/56.
WCaG aims to:
WCaG offers:
These UK environmental programmes—Environmental Land Management (ELM), Countryside Stewardship (CS), the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), and Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG)—provide a complete framework that promotes sustainable land use, and biodiversity enhancement. These programmes offer landowners and farmers significant financial incentives. Depending on the actions and environmental outcomes, the potential monetary values can range from hundreds to thousands of pounds per hectare.
What’s more, the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) and Woodland Carbon Guarantee (WCaG) offer landowners and farmers substantial support for woodland creation and carbon sequestration. Landowners can contribute to a healthier environment for everyone by enhancing biodiversity and supporting the UK’s efforts to tackle climate change simply by participating in these programmes. Doing so also provides financial rewards for their environmental stewardship. You can expect future articles here that will explore specific grants and initiatives in greater detail, providing you with detailed information that will help you with nature recovery efforts on your land.
A summary of the UK’s 2024 budget cuts and tax changes, and how it will affect landowners.Plus some very practical strategies for how to deal with them.
