Farmers can now apply to the Countryside Stewardship Mid Tier scheme for multi-agreements and one-off grants to enhance the environment.
CS Mid Tier opened from Tuesday (21 March) for agreements starting in 2024, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) announced.
The aim of Mid Tier is to protect and enhance the natural environment through multi-year management options and capital items which improve the environment.
Grants are available as two options. The first is the management option, which includes multi-year agreements with payments made every year for five years.
The second option is capital items – which includes a range of grants for specific, one-off capital works.
Farmers can choose CS Mid Tier grants through two different routes - Mid Tier and Wildlife Offers.
Mid Tier is for a wide range of management options and capital items. This route helps farmers do more to support your local environment.
Applications will remain open until 18 August 2023 unless the funding is fully allocated.
The second route is Wildlife Offers, which includes a range of management options that focus on providing habitats for farm wildlife.
It’s non-competitive and is the quickest and easiest way to apply for the Mid Tier.
Earlier this year, the government announced new revenue rates for all new and existing Mid Tier and Higher Tier CS agreements.
On average, there will be a 10% increase in revenue rates, the government confirmed.
Guidance on applying to the CS Mid Tier scheme can be found on Defra's website.
