From Friday 29th September, applications can be made for the new Habitat Wales Scheme. The scheme provides an alternative offer of support for eligible farmers, including Glastir Advanced, Commons and Organic farmers when their contracts end on 31st December 2023. The aims of the Habitat Wales scheme are to:
- protect habitat land previously under management in 2023 up to the full introduction of the Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) in 2025.
- introduce additional habitat land, not currently under paid management, into sustainable land management before start of SFS.
- maintain environmental support for common land.
Eligible land classifications
Eligible habitat land has been split into 3 classifications:
- Land currently under a habitat option within a Glastir contract (including Glastir Commons).
- Habitat land (excluding designated sites), not currently under management in 2023, as identified by published maps on DataMapWales.
- Land voluntarily managed as habitat (this land has potential to become habitat land following management).
Management payments for designated sites within existing Glastir contracts will be maintained, however, designated sites not currently under a Glastir contract will not be eligible for payment under the Habitat Wales scheme.
Application Process
- The application window opened on Friday 29th September 2023, offering 12-month contracts which will commence on 1st January 2024.
- Farmers can submit an ‘Expression of Interest’ within a 6-week window which closes on Friday 10th November.
- Applications are farmer-led and submitted via Rural Payment Wales online accounts.
- Habitat areas are pre-populated onto the on-line application form.
- The contract is an ‘all habitat’ agreement – applicants are not able to select which habitat areas to include in the contract.
- Applicants can include additional land to be managed as habitat in the application.
- The scoring and selection process will be competitive, with the scheme targeting areas where the greatest environmental benefits can be achieved.
- Successful applicants will submit a claim via their SAF form in 2024.
Payment Rates
For individual farm businesses, the payment rates are £69 per ha for arable plants and £62 per ha for existing trees, scrub, and woodland. The maximum contract value is capped according to the area of eligible habitat land.
On common land the payment rate is £25 per ha, with additional management payments available for stock management, mixed grazing and reduce stocking.
For further information visit: https://www.gov.wales/habitat-wales-scheme
