Updated: Link to guidance for those finding it difficult to meet scheme requirements due to hot and dry weather conditions.
Hot and dry weather conditions
See the guidance for farmers finding it difficult to meet scheme requirements.
See the 4 new Countryside Stewardship Offers for Wildlife for the 2018 application round.
Information for agreement holders is available on the agreement holders page.
About the scheme
Countryside Stewardship (CS) provides financial incentives for farmers and land managers to look after their environment by:
- conserving and restoring wildlife habitats
- flood risk management
- woodland creation and management
- reducing widespread water pollution from agriculture
- keeping the character of the countryside
- preserving historical features in the landscape
- encouraging educational access
The scheme is:
- open to all eligible farmers, woodland owners, foresters and other land managers
- suitable for many types of land use, for example conventional and organic farmland, coastal areas, uplands and woodlands
- competitive
- scored against local priority targets to maximise environmental benefit
There are 4 main elements to the scheme:
Contact
Contact Natural England if you have any queries, including woodland options and grants:
Enquiries
Natural England
County Hall, Spetchley Road
Worcester
WR5 2NP
Email
enquiries@naturalengland.org.uk
Telephone
0300 060 3900
Opening times: 8:30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays)
Find out about call charges at www.gov.uk/call-charges.
Applications
Send paper-based applications and supporting information for online applications to the office for your county.
For woodland grants (woodland creation, woodland tree health and woodland management plan), send all supporting information to Crewe.
| County | Office | Address, email, telephone |
|---|---|---|
| Avon, Cheshire, Cleveland, Cornwall, Cumbria, Devon, Dorset, Durham, Gloucestershire, Greater Manchester, Hereford and Worcester, Isles of Scilly, Lancashire, Merseyside, Northumberland, Shropshire, Somerset, Staffordshire, Tyne and Wear, Warwickshire, West Midlands, Wiltshire, Worcestershire | Crewe | Countryside Stewardship Delivery Services, Natural England, PO Box 380, Crewe CW1 6YH – Email ts.crewe@naturalengland.org.uk – Telephone 020 8026 1806 |
| Derbyshire, Humberside, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, North Yorkshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, Rutland, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire | Nottingham | Countryside Stewardship Delivery Services, Natural England, PO Box 10276, Nottingham NG2 9PD – Email ts.nottingham@naturalengland.org.uk – Telephone 020 8026 2018 |
| Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, East Sussex, Essex, Greater London, Hampshire, Hertfordshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Norfolk, Oxfordshire, Suffolk, Surrey, West Sussex | Reading | Countryside Stewardship Delivery Services, Natural England, PO Box 2423, Reading RG1 6WY – Email ts.reading@naturalengland.org.uk – Telephone 020 8026 7254 |
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