This is an area of rapid change in England, as the development of Environmental Land Management Schemes (ELMS), the new agri-environment support scheme, is underway but not complete. The first tier will be the Sustainable Farming Incentive( SFI) which is not expected to open until late spring 2026 at the earliest.

Countryside Stewardship We are pleased to see that the Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier option for Floodplain Meadows CGS18 has now been published and is open for applications from the eligible farmers, foresters and land managers who received an invitation from their local Natural England Area Team. It is intended to be a controlled rollout for 2026. This means that for now, access is by invitation only.  

The Floodplain Meadows Partnership have worked with both Defra and Natural England to ensure the option was introduced and that the actions required reflected our own evidence-based advice.  Indeed the advice the FMP can provide is highlighted in the CGS18 page.  

Applicants will need to agree an implementation plan or feasibility study with your Natural England adviser if you’re restoring or creating floodplain meadows. This can be funded through Capital Grants. These are available through:

• PA1: Implementation plan
• PA2: Feasibility study

There is existing funding through the current Countryside Stewardship scheme relevant to floodplain meadows: 

• managing species-rich grassland (GS6) 
• restoring grassland towards species-rich grassland (GS7)
• creating species-rich grassland (GS8)
• a supplement for hay making ( GS15)

Please do get in touch with us if you have been invited to apply or are working with a landowner who has been invited, or if you are interested in applying for this option.

Landscape Recovery 

50 pilot projects are in development to examine how landscape scale projects can be funded through the Landscape Recovery  in England which will allow delivery bodies to test and trial the scheme and learn lessons ahead of future rounds. The aim of the Landscape Recovery Projects demonstrate how environmental outcomes can be achieved alongside sustainable food production.  The Floodplain Meadow Partnership are already involved in a number of Landscape Recovery projects including:

• The North East Cotswolds Farmer Cluster whose project seeks to restore a catchment-wide habitat mosaic (such as floodplain meadows) along the River Evenlode.  https://www.cotswoldfarmers.org/evenlode-landscape-recovery
• Wyescapes whose project focuses on river corridors of the Wye and Lugg in Herefordshire. https://herefordshireruralhub.co.uk/wyescapes/

Some farmers prefer not to be reliant on external support and are developing models that are based on diversification of income streams. An example of a floodplain farmer doing this is https://www.andyrummingsbeef.co.uk/ 

Other opportunities are developing, including carbon trading schemes and nutrient trading schemes. However these are largely still in a development phase. The delivery of these types of schemes is most likely to be the same mechanisms as for BNG.