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Higher Level Stewardship
Higher Level Stewardship - Funding for Access Options
One of the main aims of Environmental Stewardship is to promote public access and understanding of the countryside. Farmers entering into Higher Level Scheme (HLS) agreements or who have existing HLS agreements may be eligible for capital and revenue funding for visitor access to their farms.
Farm visit © Paul Keene
HLS Capital Funding
Natural England currently has HLS funding available for access capital items ranging from benches and kissing gates to on-farm classroom and washing facilities. Farmers in HLS who can demonstrate the potential for their farms to host high quality educational visits for school children or care farming clients items should contact their local Natural England Land Management Adviser by 30 June 2012 to apply for the funding.
Educational access Capital grants assist with creating on-farm classroom facilities, toilets/washrooms, farm trailers for transporting school visits to points of interest on the farm, providing access furniture such as kissing gates for permissive access routes and Countryside Educational Visits Accreditation Scheme
(CEVAS)
The rate of grant available will depend on the work being undertaken. For example access furniture has set grant rates, educational access facilities such as classrooms can receive up to 80 percent of the total cost subject to a ceiling of £50,000 for classroom facilities and £25,000 for toilets/washing facilities. CEVAS training can be paid in full.
Target maps for educational access
East of England: (1009kb)
, East Midlands: (873kb), West Midlands: (880kb), London: (652kb), South East: (1.31mb), South West: (922kb), Yorkshire and the Humber: (797kb), North East: (518kb), North West: (967kb)
HLS farm visit revenue payments
Farmers can apply for Educational Access options for new and existing HLS agreements. The payments are for an annual base payment of £500 and payments of £100 per visit for educational visits for school pupils up to and including age 16 or for Care Farming visits. The maximum payment for educational visits available is for 25 visits per farm per annum. The minimum payment is 4 visits per farm per annum.
For more information about hosting educational access on your farm.
For more information about care farming.
For information about enriching the permissive access to your farm.
Permissive access
Permissive access revenue payments cannot be included in new HLS agreements. Where the provision of permissive linear routes or open access under an agri-environment scheme has proved to be of public benefit then Natural England and Defra are keen that permissive access should continue on a voluntary basis.
If the agreement holder is willing to consider allowing voluntary permissive access a number of factors should be considered before they agree to this happening – these are set out in this guidance note: (239kb).
