The latest round of the £2.5M Countryside Stewardship Facilitation Fund has opened this week (7 November 2022).

The fund is designed to encourage collaboration between farming groups and supports Government efforts to improve the environment and create cleaner, greener landscapes.

In practical terms this funding allows facilitators, for example local farming and nature groups and charities, to give advice and share knowledge with groups of farmers and other land managers on activities such as restoring habitats for wildlife and improving biodiversity, creating woodland, improving air and water quality, or restoring historic environments.

“By joining forces on shared environmental ambitions, farmers and landowners are able to deliver a greater positive impact on our landscape than they could ever achieve alone,” said farming minister Mark Spencer.

“This Countryside Stewardship Facilitation Fund is already helping to bring farmers and landowners together for the benefit of nature and the environment, and I encourage farming communities across England to consider applying.”

Wide-ranging benefits

This is the seventh round of the Countryside Stewardship Facilitation Fund under the current Rural Development Programme for England. 180 groups with over 4,000 members have benefited from the funding so far, with this round of funding expected to benefit more than 40 further groups.

Previous projects to have benefited have include:

  • Running demonstration days in timber extraction and wood processing in Morecambe Bay
  • Exploring measures to reduce flooding along the Glenderamackin river in the Lake District
  • Improving farmers’ understanding of ground nesting birds in the Upper Nidderdale
  • Helping to reconnect farmers with nature and improving their confidence in conservation farming in the White Peak

The fund supports the delivery of the 25 Year Environmental Plan, and is a part of Defra’s plans for a renewed agricultural sector, centred around incentivising sustainable farming practices alongside profitable food production.

The application window is open from 7 November until 25 January 2023. For more information on how to apply, click here.