Countryside Productivity Small Grant Scheme
I live in North Shropshire so cannot apply for LEADER Grant Funding, is anything else available to me?
Yes, says Harriet Matthews, a surveyor at Berrys: It seems you are already aware that LEADER funding is currently only available in South Shropshire. Therefore, opportunities for funding in North Shropshire have been few and far between. However, at the new Dairy-Tech event last month (FEB) the farming minister George Eustice launched a new grant scheme under the existing Countryside Productivity Scheme. The new ‘Countryside Productivity Small Grant Scheme’ is different to its larger counterparts due to the fact it uses an online application process and is targeted at supporting investment for specific pieces of agricultural equipment. It is open to dairy, arable, livestock and horticultural farmers nationwide.
It was announced that a fund of £60m is to be made available and grants of between £3,000 and £12,000 are available towards up to 40 per cent of the eligible costs of the farm equipment. All items included within the scheme have been identified as helping achieve improvements to the following criteria; animal welfare, resource efficiency or nutrient management. The application process is relatively simple and once submitted, the items in your application will be automatically allocated a score based on the degree to which they meet the above criteria. In turn, if your application scores highly enough, the grant will be awarded.
Categories for the eligible capital items are spilt into Cattle equipment, Sheep equipment, Pig equipment, general livestock equipment, precision farming equipment, resource management equipment and other general equipment. Eligible items include electronic Sheep Weigh scales, heat detection systems for cattle, Badger proof feed holders, enclosed piglet creeps and heat pads, GPS for precision farming, yield mapping, direct/strip drills and dribble bars to name but a few. A full list of eligible items can be found in the handbook online or by contacting us.
The deadline for applications is midday March 14 so be sure to apply soon.
Contact Harriet Matthews at the Shrewsbury office of Berrys on 01743 267067 or email harriet.matthews@berrys.uk.com
