Payment options still available for agroforestry

With cuts to the government’s farming budget in the spending review following a pause of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), it’s an uncertain picture for farmers wanting to make nature-friendly changes. But there are still options available to help farmers to discover the benefits to their farm that tree-planting can bring.

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The SFI is not the only source of government funding

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While important, there are other options outside of the SFI so a pause on this doesn’t mean that farmers have to stop their plans to plant trees. Soil Association Head of Agroforestry Ben Raskin says: “The long-term benefits of trees to a farm’s productivity and resilience mean it’s a good thing to be doing anyway. Government support is obviously great but with climate change farmers need trees for their crops and animals to thrive.
 

“Whether you’re going to plant this year or just thinking about it, then planning is essential and the more you know the more success you will have. If you haven’t already planted some trees, plant some, the cost for a small number of trees is minimal and it will give you a sense of what works and what doesn’t.”
 

Apply for a planning grant

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There is a PA4 planning grant which will pay farmers to write an agroforestry plan. An approved PA4 is also a requirement of higher tier Countryside Stewardship which is still available to anyone already in the scheme. Applications for higher tier will be opening in summer 2025.

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Farmers can therefore use PA4 to make get their plans going, and there is no indication that the SFI will be closed permanently so it makes good business sense to use this to plan and be ready for the SFI to reopen. The PA4 is an agroforestry plan looking at whole farm. Part of it will require plans for where new tree planting will take place, but it also includes planning for how to manage existing hedges, shelter belts and woodlands.
 

These are assets every farm has which are often not being used to their full potential, for example to provide shelter to livestock or to provide timber resources. Ben adds: “Start small, plan and learn. And if you’re going to do that, then you may as well be paid to plan via PA4 and you should definitely come to the Agroforestry Show to get all the advice on offer to give you the best chance at success.”

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Private and charity funding streams for tree planting
 

There are also private streams of revenue that are available to farmers to both plan agroforestry and for tree planting itself.

The Woodland Trust is one avenue where farmers can not only receive funding, but also advisory support.

Woodoaks Farm, host of the 2025 Agroforestry Show, has benefited for funding to plant a shelter belt, including for fencing to protect the young trees via the Trust’s MOREwoods scheme funded by Show sponsor Lloyds Bank.

 

Trees for Your Farm scheme

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Using funding from Sainsbury’s – a sponsor for the show – the Woodland Trust’s Trees for Your Farm scheme is a UK-wide agroforestry programme enabling farmers interested in agroforestry to receive free on-farm advice from a Woodland Trust adviser to design a scheme suitable for their farm objectives. If successful in its application, the farmer then receive trees and tree protection to create their scheme.
 

Helen Chesshire, Lead Farming Advocate for the Woodland Trust, said: “Interest in agroforestry has grown over the last decade and it now features regularly in the farming press, at farming events and by land use policy makers. Our Trees for your Farm scheme is always oversubscribed and this alongside our MOREwoods and MOREhedges offer farmers a range of schemes to apply for via the Woodland Trust. Encouraging signs are now present from Defra and all the devolved nations in rolling out policy support for agroforestry, so we urge farmers to keep going with their ideas around trees. But we know from experience farmers need knowledge and advice as well as financial incentives if it is to be taken up at scale, so the Agroforestry Show is a great place to find that.”

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Biodiversity Net Gain

Biodiversity Net Gain is a potential source of funding for both agroforestry and farm woodland.   Woodoaks the host farm is exploring this funding option.  On day 1 of the show Chris Cooper, of Natural Asset Partners, will take delegates through the live case study at the show’s host farm Woodoaks, where plans are underway to create a habitat bank.  This will be followed on Day 2 by a farm walk to see the areas of the farm being considered for the Woodoaks Habitat bank.
 

Book a 121 clinic at the Agroforestry Show

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Advice on these and other private funding streams will be available via 121 sessions with skilled advisors as well as the many information and demonstration sessions taking place at the Agroforestry Show.

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Details on how to book coming soon.

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