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Tailored business support for farmers during the agricultural transition will be made available from August this year.

Outside of the EU and no longer bound by the Common Agricultural Policy, the Government has set out plans for a seven-year agricultural transition to the new system which will reward farmers for environmental improvements alongside food production on their land.

The Future Farming Resilience Fund has been developed to provide business support to farmers and land managers to help them navigate the changes over this period. Following a competition launched in March, £10.7 million of funding has been awarded to nineteen organisations to support farmers and land managers who are in receipt of Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) payments. The support will be available, free of charge, from August this year through to March 2022 and any farmer or land manager currently in receipt of BPS is eligible to apply.

The Government today urged farmers to sign up to the scheme, which aims to deliver direct benefits to farmers and land managers by enabling them to:  

• Help understand the changes that are happening as a result of the Agricultural Transition;
• Identify how, what and when you may need to adapt your business model; 
• Access tailored support to address these changes. 

The lessons learned will feed into the design of a final phase which will be available from 2022-2024.

Farming Minister Victoria Prentis said:

“We know that change can be challenging which is why we are committed to helping farmers and land managers throughout the agricultural transition to feel supported to make the best decisions for their farms, families and future.

“As we continue to co-design and develop the future schemes it is important that the industry has access to expert support and knowledge. So I urge farmers and land managers to sign up to the Future Farming Resilience Fund now to ensure that come August they are able to use the help that is available to them.”

The government continues to honour the commitments set out in the Agricultural Transition Plan and work with farmers and land managers on co-designing the future environmental land management schemes and wider support. Earlier this month, the Environment Secretary announced further details of how farmers will receive payments for the Sustainable Farming Incentive 2022, the first of three environmental land management schemes to be rolled out, with farmers able to access up to £70 per hectare for improving the health of their soil.

A new Farming in Protected Landscapes programme was launched in July, which will provide funding to help farmers and other land managers in England based in National Parks or Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The funding will go towards one-off projects to support nature recovery; improve public access; mitigate the impacts of climate change; provide opportunities for people to enjoy and understand the landscape; and support nature-friendly and sustainable farm businesses. Projects could include creating ponds or other wetland to support a variety of wildlife; providing new or easier public access opportunities and links to the Public Rights of Way network; conserving historic features on a farm; or even action to reduce carbon emissions or use of plastics on farms.

The Government also launched a consultation on the lump sum exit scheme and delinked payments which seeks to offer a fairer system for farmers, encouraging generational change by providing more flexibility for new entrants to start up their farm businesses and supporting those who are ready to leave the sector to do so on their own terms.

Listed below are the details of the provider organisations:

• AHDB
• Berrys
• Brown & Co
• Bury Beet Group
• Ceres Rural LLP
• Devon County Council
• DJM Consulting
• JH Agri Consultancy
• Kite Consulting
• Landworkers Alliance
• Laurence Gould Partnership
• M B Hodgson & Son Limited
• Natural Enterprise
• NIAB
• Promar International
• Ricardo-AEA Ltd
• RSK ADAS Limited
• SRUC
• The Prince’s Countryside Fund

Further information of grant providers, geographical coverage and contact details can be found on Defra’s Farming Is Changing blog on GOV.UK.