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Countryside Stewardship update for the year ahead

A recent DEFRA webinar suggests that there will be circa 500 roll-over/mirror agreements offered for Higher Level Environmental Stewardship (HLS) and Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT) schemes. This is planned to be in addition to 900 new CSHT agreements; a disappointingly low number as DEFRA look to utilise the £2.4 billion available in the 2025/26 farming budget, rolled over from the £358 million underspend of 2021 – 2023. 

With over 80,000 Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) claimants in 2016, the 900 new CSHT agreements this year would equate to just 1.75% of BPS claimants gaining access to new income from Countryside Stewardship in 2025. 

For some of the 500 mirror/extension agreements, which simply carry forward the terms of the original agreements, changing circumstances or evolving business objectives might lead the business to reject those extensions, particularly when the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) requirements appear more flexible and therefore more attractive.  

While DEFRA clearly intend for most businesses to use SFI and for CSHT to target a smaller number of farmers, the figures shared in the webinar will disappoint those seeking a long-term income through a 10-year CSHT agreement. Furthermore, it is highly likely that DEFRA will prioritise businesses that have already made efforts to access the scheme, meaning speculative applications to CSHT will potentially be a failed exercise. 

DEFRA have also announced that businesses with  Mid Tier agreements will be given the chance to terminate these agreements early and move across to SFI. The timing of this opportunity will be critical to deciding when or whether to act. Terminating a Mid Tier agreement during the year will forfeit the income due for that year up to the point of termination. For example, if terminating from 1st March, the business would forfeit two months of income and transition to SFI as soon as possible thereafter. Conversely, if the opportunity to terminate Mid-Tier agreements doesn’t arise until September, it may be more prudent to wait until 31st December before terminating to receive the full annual payment for the Mid Tier agreement before starting an SFI agreement on 1st January 2026. 

What was clear from DEFRA’s webinar was how many of the working details of these mechanisms are still to be determined. As a result, businesses should prioritise understanding the performance of their farm enterprises and improving profit margins using Countryside Stewardship or SFI to support this goal. Ultimately, the role of a farm business remains as it should be, to produce food profitably and sustainably. 

Article by

Neil Carter
Rural Associate

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