Farmers’ distrust in RPA deepens over SFI delays
By Rachael BrownKeeping up to speed in this shifting landscape of future farming payments is a challenge for many farmers and landowners.
The extended timelines issued by the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) and Defra to the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) have deepened farmers’ distrust – the very thing both of these Government bodies are desperately trying to restore.
This was the message from H&H Land and Estates chartered surveyor and environment adviser, Nick Mullins, who criticised the scrapping of the ‘standards’ terminology within SFI and the announcement of further delays.
But despite the ongoing problems with SFI, he insisted there were still opportunities within the scheme which could appeal to some farmers and landowners.
Mr Mullins said: “We prepare for one thing and then it is delayed or does not happen. If you missed it, the RPA cancelled all previous SFI
agreements with no warning to enable it to provide its new 2023 offer.
“This has certainly not been the smooth transition the RPA had hoped for, but the 2023 offer does seem good, with more actions available for applicants to choose, although why it has scrapped the name ‘standards’ remains a mystery.”
Deadlines and dates have also shifted last minute too. The Mid-Tier deadline was extended by four weeks, a day before the applications had to be submitted, after what were said to have been technical issues with the RPA online system.
The start of the ‘controlled roll-out’ for SFI was promised for the end of August, but that has since been postponed to September 18.
Sudden changes
Mr Mullins said: “These sudden changes in dates and schemes do not help give us confidence in the RPA – the exact thing they are trying to restore. It makes it very difficult to provide assurance to clients that this will not happen again.”
Despite this, he said there was one
positive to take away, suggesting that the application process appeared to be ‘less onerous’ compared to previous grant applications. But this was with the exception of common land.
Struggle
“It has long been known the RPA has struggled to map common land on its computer systems. In SFI22 it appeared that this had been resolved, but now the RPA has reverted to paper applications. This means that common associations will not be able to apply for SFI until later in the year, at least October, if not November-December.”
The RPA hoped to have an online system available in spring 2024, but Mr Mullins said ‘we will have to wait and see’, adding that he would continue to help prepare applications and ‘put pressure’ on the RPA.
All these issues aside, Mr Mullins believed SFI could prove a ‘better option’ for some farmers than Countryside Stewardship (CS), with agreements only being for three years, making it more appealing for tenant farmers in particular.
“The restrictions and requirements
for each option are less prescriptive, enabling farmers to deliver the action in a way which best suits their situation. There is no application deadline, and payment for delivery of options will be quarterly, which obviously helps with cashflow,” he added.
“There are no capital options available in SFI yet, but the CS Capital Grant is available for this and is more appealing than previous years, with the maximum grant amounts and restrictions on fencing removed.
“We should expect to see more of the CS Mid-Tier options appear in SFI, albeit with a slightly different name and requirements, but the same payment rates. But that assumes the RPA will not change its mind at the last minute once again.”
When asked about the confusion and uncertainty over the new payment schemes in an interview with Farmers Guardian this week, Defra Secretary Therese Coffey said she had listened to industry concerns and had extended the CS deadline by four weeks.
She said: “In the last six weeks we have had 600 extra CS applications and SFI will be open from next week.”
In this special, we take a look at the grants available to farmers and the frustrations over uncertainty and delays.The extended timelines issued by the Rural Payments Agency and Defra to the Sustainable Farming Incentive have deepened farmers’ distrust.
EVEN
FOR TINY SPACES
UniSpread: the ultraagile and
spreader by Vogelsang
Compact and versatile: choose our UniSpread and use it as a dribble bar or trailing shoe. Benefi t from easy installation and retrofi tting, small linkage with low overall weight, durable UV-resistant hose material, a high precision distributor and a chassis mounted system. Spread the news – UniSpread is the top choice for best results! sales.uk@vogelsang.info | 01270 216 600
Collaboration ‘critical’ for Landscape Recovery scheme
By Rachael BrownThe technical nature, long-term commitment and the need for collaboration could prove to be problematic for landowners and farmers applying to the Landscape Recovery scheme, experts have warned.
Round two of the fund is expected to close at midnight on September 21.
Given the extensive preparation time and the engagement required by multiple stakeholders, it is understood many farmers and landowners who expressed an initial interest in applying are a long way down the line by now.
But there was some hesitancy and caution flagged by the industry on how favourable the Landscape Recovery scheme was and the outcomes it would deliver.
Claire Robinson, senior countryside adviser at the NFU said there were concerns the Landscape Recovery scheme could take land ‘permanently out of production’ and expressed a worry about how tenant farmers would fare if a favourable partnership between tenant and landlord did not exist.
Concerns
She said: “We have raised concerns for tenants from the outset of the scheme being proposed.
“Consequently, Defra wants to see support from both landlords and tenants as part of the application.
“It is important that this is a collaborative endeavour.”
The Landscape Recovery scheme is one of three Environmental Land Management schemes, alongside Countryside Stewardship and the Sustainable Farming Incentive.
It is aimed at funding large-scale projects from 500 to 5,000 hectares and is designed to deliver significant outcomes demanding collaborative action across a big area — for example, restoring ecological and hydrological function across a landscape.
Ms Robinson said: “We want to see a scheme that supports farmers in delivering for the environment alongside producing food.
“Our concern with Landscape Recovery is it would take land
permanently out of production –at most, conservation grazing would be required to manage the habitat.
“At this stage, Defra is seeking project concepts to come forward for further development. If they are successful, the projects will have a period of up to two years to develop.
“Part of the development phase is about securing private funding for project delivery.
“If this process can unlock private finance for farmers, then that must be positive. It should open the doors for more farmers to access private finance.”
But Ms Robinson admitted the fund will not suit all farmers and will be ‘quite a challenge’ for many.
“The aim of the scheme is to secure long-term land use change.
“This is about creating or extending habitats where farming activity will be reduced to, say, conservation grazing.
“The projects need to be at least 20 years in length, with ongoing delivery of that habitat secured beyond that. Farmers considering this scheme need to take professional and legal advice before they sign up to the project.
“The issues to consider relate to
future value of the land, tax implications, where risk lies for project failure, and who is making decisions on management requirements.
“The project development phase is the place to consider all these issues.”
Ms Robinson added that Landscape Recovery projects had the potential to develop a new way of delivering for the environment.
Development
She added: “The development of projects will require complex issues to be worked through, providing learning for all. It has the potential to unlock private finance for all farmers.”
Tenant Farmers Association chief executive George Dunn was concerned whether tenants would be ‘disenfranchised’ due to the focus on taking land out of production or if they may lose land so landlords can apply directly.
He said: “I am aware of some schemes and proposed schemes where there has been little liaison with the tenants in advance of putting schemes together whereas, in other areas, the designers of the scheme are dealing with the issues head-on.”
He highlighted that the Rock Review proposed landlords should not have access to public funding where land had been resumed from a tenant farmer.
“While the Defra response did not accept this in whole, it was a matter that Defra wanted to discuss with the Farm Tenancy Forum.”
H&H Land & Estates associate director and chartered surveyor Rachel Bagshaw stressed the importance of ‘long-term public funding of 20 years or more’ to account for how long such projects take to deliver. Landowners and farmers were advised to establish a ‘long-term commitment’ to managing the land in this way.
Ms Bagshaw claimed there had been at least three applications submitted in this round in south Cumbria alone, which she described as ‘encouraging’.
She added round one had seen 22 projects selected for funding, up from the 15 Defra had initially said it would support due to the ‘quality of applications’. Up to 25 were expected to secure funding in round two.
“Applications will have to demonstrate environmental and social benefits, value for money and readiness to progress,” she said.
Livestock farmers in England faced ‘ongoing uncertainty’ as Defra fails to set a date for the second round of applications for the Slurry Infrastructure grant.
Simon Haley, director of SRH Agribusiness, said this lack of clarity would force some farmers to regrettably ‘shelve or postpone’ investment which inevitably would result in environmental objectives for the farming industry to be pushed back.
Defra was probed on a specific date in autumn in which the online checker would be opened, but failed to give any further details.
Instead, it said it was ‘preparing to launch the scheme shortly’ and guidance would be issued by the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) soon.
Mr Haley said: “It is a long time to wait for the next window to come round, for example anyone successful in round two and who was made to wait from earlier in the year after putting in their expression of interest in December 2022 is realistically look-
Defra refuses to give date on slurry grant
ing at summer 2024 at the earliest before they can start construction.”
In December, Defra and the RPA opened the first round of the Slurry Infrastructure grant for applications. During that period they saw strong interest in the scheme, with ‘more than 1,200 applications submitted’.
Out of those submissions, only 374 were invited to submit a full application.
Nuneaton dairy farmer Charles Goadby, who milks more than 350 Holstein cows, said he was looking at a large slurry storage project which
he hoped would have positive implications on the farm’s carbon footprint, sustainability and would help ‘future-proof’ energy requirements.
But he said he was still waiting for the second round of applications to open.
He said: “I did not apply first time round as the magic maps had me out of the priority area, despite being in just about every catchment going.”
Mr Haley believed £147 million would be available in round two for the grant.
He said: “This is a significant – 4.5
times wider – coverage and eligibility increase on round one, and at claim stage once successful, it is helpful that the RPA is allowing standard costs to be claimed against rather than needing the submission of multiple quotes.”
But Mr Haley said currently the fund was not delivering to its name as a ‘transformation’ fund and with a General Election getting ever closer, he feared some farmers would sit and wait.
He said: “The Farming Transformation Fund should do exactly what it says on the tin.
“It should be all about transformation. But continued delays, pushbacks, lack of clarity and uncertainty in all likelihood means projects are shelved, investment is postponed or does not happen and planning consent expires.
“Especially getting closer to a year of another General Election at some point in 2024, people will just sit on their hands and wait to see what the new winds of political change bring, whether that be increased regulation or more favourable grant opportunities.”
Defra has said it was ‘preparing to launch the second round of applications for the Slurry Infrastructure grant shortly’.
The Farming Transformation Fund should do exactly what it says on the tin. It should be all about transformation
World
UK has said that farmers increasingly find it difficult to track down environmentally focused advice, leaving them feeling frustrated.
By Rachael BrownFarmers are encouraged to take a look at a new online agri-environmental advice hub developed by The Rivers Trust.
The hub is aimed at supporting farmers in making it easier to find funding opportunities and advice to help develop sustainable farming practices on-farm.
World Wide Fund for Nature UK (WWF) argued farmers increasingly found it difficult to track down environmentally focused advice, leaving them feeling frustrated.
WWF said it was not only hampering the adoption of sustainable farm practices, but also the overall delivery of environmental outcomes.
Simon Aguss, UK catchment manager at WWF, said: “There is no shortage of advice, information or initiatives designed to help farmers and others in the food chain identify and adopt more sustainable practices, whether from Government, businesses or the non-governmental organisation sector.”
Opportunities
But he said the issue was there was no easy way to identify organisations offering local, environmentally focused farm advice, initiatives or funding opportunities.
He said: “Overall, we could do with greater collaboration and more joined-up thinking, whether between sectors - Government and private - or to ensure that boundaries, whether catchment or county, do not artificially impede the uptake and delivery of advice and new initiatives.
“Where advice is funding-driven, it is often time- and location-specific, but without an effective channel of communication, those
Advice hub to ‘join the dots’ for farmers
potentially eligible often fail to hear about it.”
The new agricultural advice hub was based on the outcomes of pilot research carried out by WWF.
Mr Aguss said: “Inputs from retailers, food supply chain businesses, farmers and advisers, helped us develop the concept of a web-based, interactive map-based tool, thatsearchable by location – would indicate the organisations able to deliver environmental advice to any farmer making an enquiry.
“It is something of a cliche, but we want the hub to become a one-stop shop for farm-level environmental advice.
“Users can find and contact advisers across all sectors – Government agencies, NGOs, the private sector – and not only identify sources of funding, but also local support such as demonstration farms and farm cluster groups.”
Alex Adam, deputy director of strategy and stewardship at The Rivers Trust, said: “We have built it like a Wikipedia page, allowing people to add their own details and data, without charge.
“We have also created tools which will help everyone better understand the environmental challenges and opportunities in their particular area.”
MORE INFORMATION
The hub can be accessed via this link aghub.catchmentbasedapproach.org
Farmers can now apply for grants to improve their calf housing on-farm.
Defra opens online checker for cattle housing grants
By Rachael BrownFarmers looking to build new, or improve existing calf housing have been encouraged to use the online checker to find out if they are eligible for Defra’s grant.
Farmers should refer back to the current guidance of the scheme before completing the online checker, the NFU said, to ensure their proposal has the best possible chance of being approved.
NFU senior support adviser Richard Wordsworth said: “There has been a lot of interest from our members in this new grant funding opportunity.
“The key points I would urge anyone looking at this scheme to consider are, how it will fit in with the current farming business and, critical to this is, to read the scheme guidance in full before completing the online checker.”
This new housing grant could contribute up to 40 per cent of the cost of cattle housing. Aimed at
dairy and beef farmers, the grant looks to help farms improve the health and welfare of calves by offering a good environment, as well as facilitating social interaction through group or paired housing.
The grant would contribute to calf housing which provides good ventilation, protects calves from extreme temperatures, has solid floors with adequate draining, houses calves in pairs or groups and meets environmental objectives such as having solar panel roofs.
Positive
The NFU warned farmers this would be a competitive grant and projects which have a positive impact on animal health and welfare will be prioritised.
Defra will also look more favourably on farmers considering innovation and productivity, as well as environmental outcomes.
Sarah Tomlinson, a farm vet and consultant at Kingshay Veterinary, welcomed the calf housing grants
and highlighted how the grant could lead to a more ‘sustainable livestock industry, both environmentally and financially’.
“Having been a farm vet for more than 20 years, I have seen that often the limiting factor to enhancing calf health and welfare has been the lack of the ability to invest large sums of money in youngstock accommodation,” she said.
“Having good housing for the future of our dairy and beef and herds and those reared for the food chain underpins good health which, in turn, can enhance the excellent standards of welfare we have and are proud of.
“The benefits to calves, farmers, farms and the tax payers will be far reaching and will include the reduction of antimicrobial use on-farm, less stress on people working in rearing units and the reduction in waste due to fewer sick calves and improved growth rates, directly lowering the carbon footprint on farm,” Ms Tomlinson said.
Defra was expected to extend the infrastructure grant to other
livestock sectors, with future funding suggested to be available for pig and poultry farmers.
REGISTER ONLINE
The checker closes on November 30; it can be filled in at check-farmingtransformation-fund.defra.gov.uk/ upgrading-calf-housing/start
The benefits to calves, farmers, farms and tax payers will be far reaching and will include the reduction in antimicrobial use
SARAH TOMLINSON
SLURRYQUIP, PROVIDING UNIQUE SPREADING SOLUTIONS
Chassis Mounted Tanker Dribble Bars and Trailing Shoes: Available from 7.2m to 12m, can be retro fitted to any tanker, all equipment is fitted with 50mm pipes and the robust Slurryquip Xiphos macerator.
Steering Front Reeler: Equipped with a drop out Bobbin this system makes reeling quicker, easier and reduces the need to travel over coated fields or up narrow lanes as it pulls the hose to you.
Slurryquip flow tracker: Designed to put the accuracy into slurry spreading, Records loads and calculates the target speed to achieve the desired application rate, starts from £195.
Bauer SX1000 pumps: EX STOCK, available as a complete unit on a frame or as the core pump only, we also stock parts.
Double Macerator Umbilical Dibble bars: available in 10.2 or 12m widths,with 50mm pipes as standard and the Slurryquip Xiphos macerator providing the credentials for a serious output.
Cerberus tankers: Our unique patented design blends the dribble bar/trailing shoe arms into the front of the tank making for Enhanced visibility better weight transfer,Unrivaled Stability, zero tail swing and unequaled smoothness on the road.
SLURRY LAGOON LINERS AND FLOATING COVERS
OVER 30 YEARS EXPERIENCE
MATERIALS & INSTALLATION GUARANTEED
Calf Houses
• Can house between 10-12 calves
• High degree of protection against Pneumonia and Scours
10 - 35 Tonne Outdoor Blend Bin H
Tel: 01745 823674 Mob: 07739 711208
Email: sean@seancarrlining.co.uk www.seancarrlining.co.uk
Materials meet EA and SEPA requirements, installed and fully tested by TWI / CSWIP CERTIFIED TECHNICIANS Covers comply with EA and SSAFO legislation Full UK & Ireland Coverage
YOUR DEPENDABLE PARTNER FOR SLURRY STORAGE SOLUTIONS
• Fill by Blowpipe or Loader
from £5750
Enviroseal provide a complete range of products for slurry storage
SLURRY LAGOON LINERS
Comprehensive 25 year warranty Materials meet EA and SEPA requirements Installed and tested by certified technicians
SLURRY LAGOON FLOATING COVERS
Keeps rainwater out of slurry
Reduces odour from lagoons Covers comply with EA and SSAFO legislation
enquiries@enviroseal.co.uk t: 01695 228626 www.enviroseal.co.uk
• Can be suitable for snackers
• 4 to 8.5T from £1095
• 3 to 6T from £660
SYMMS FABRICATION
Telephone: 01935 851243
Email: Info@symmsfabrication.co.uk
Web: www.symmsfabrication.co.uk
FETF 80 loadcells - 3 way drafting - Forcing pen 20 hurdles -
FULLY GALVANIZED, 32” (813mm) internal width. Weight 1.2 tonnes. Hydraulic locking mechanism on head gate and on squeeze mechanism. Optional extras: Rubber Floor, Head Restraint, Weigh System. Coming soon: “Power Squeeze” which will more than double the pressure available to restrain an animal.
ex Yorkshire + VAT.
