Woodland Creation Planning Grant

Landowners, land managers and public bodies (other than Forestry England) can apply to the Forestry Commission to support the design of new woodland under the Woodland Creation Planning Grant (WCPG). (WCPG). 

You can apply for £1,000£1,500 to complete stageStage 1 of the Woodland Creation DesignPlanning PlanGrant TemplateApplication (MSand WordPlan. Document,This 242is KB). Thisfocused ison a desk-based exercise to identify the constraints and opportunities that may affect the proposed planting. If there’sthere is potential for woodland creation to take place on the site, then you will be offered a stageStage 2 payment. AtStage stage2 2, youoffers canfunding getat a rate of £150 per hectare, minus the £1,000£1,500 offeredpaid at stageStage 1, to complete stageStage 2 of the Woodland Creation DesignPlanning PlanGrant Template.Application and Plan. You may get supplementary payments for specialist survey work if a need for them is identified at stageStage 1. 

IfYou yourwill applicationnever isbe underpaid tenless hectaresthan in£1,500 size,for weapprove willStage make1 work and a minimum payment of £500 for stageapproved 2.Stage 2 work.

The total amount of funding you can receive is capped at £30,000£30,500 per project. 

How to apply for WCPG step by step

1. Find out if you’re eligible by talking to your Woodland Creation Officer and reading the grant terms and conditions on our forms page.

2. OnMake 2an Novemberapplication 2020,using the minimumguidance on applicationour sizeforms page. Always check the forms page to make sure you are working to the latest guidance and blockversion sizeof wasthe reducedapplication form.

3. Once your application is approved and weyou have removedaccepted thea requirementStage that1 70%agreement ofoffer, you may start work on your woodland design plan.

You can apply all year-round. The Forestry Commission aims to respond to your application within 15 working days. It may take longer if the application includes untrialled tree species proposedor foris plantingin willa achievesensitive minimumlocation. growthYou rates.must have a signed agreement in place before you start work.

Find out if you’re eligible

You must plan to create woodland that is: 

• located in England
• a minimum of five hectaresof 5 hectares or more in total size. If the proposed woodland is split into different blocks, each block must meet the definition of woodland set out by the National Forest Inventory: a minimum area of 0.5 hectares and a minimum width of 20 meters.  meters.

If youIf  you intend to seek grant aid to plant the woodland, you shouldwoodland,  you should consider the minimum areas required to apply for grants for woodland creation whencreation  when planning your proposal.

You’ll need the landowner’s consent and signature if you don’t own the land, and the Forestry Commission may ask to see your tenancy agreement to confirm your land management responsibilities.

Landscape-scale applications that span multiple land holdings may be accepted. You do not need to own or control the land, but you will need a letter confirming that the landowner(s) support the application. If your proposed site spans a border, we will only make a stageStage 2 payment of £150 per hectare on the land that is in England.

You may include more than 20% of designed open space in your plan if the constraints of your site make this necessary, but the total stageStage 2 payment will be limited to the net planting area plus 20% (of the gross area). This means that any designed open space in your plan over and above 20% of the total project area will not receive funding.

If you’ve already applied for the England Woodland Creation Offer, Countryside Stewardship, the the Woodland Carbon Fund, the the HS2 Woodland Fund, or submitted an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)Assessment  (EIA) enquiry form to plant a new woodland, you are not eligible to apply for Woodland Creation Planning Grant on that site. 

If you are already in receipt of a WCPG stageStage 1 agreement offer, you may request the addition of new blocks of proposed woodland over 0.5 hectares. If we agree to these additions, theany future stageStage 2 offer will include these areas from 26 October 2020. areas.

To bring new blocks into their agreement, stageStage 1 agreement holders will need to submit a revised stage 1 Woodland Creation DesignPlanning Grant Application and Plan Templatewith whichStage covers1 tabs amended to account for the expanded project area. No additional stageStage 1 payment will be made.

In Wemost willinstances notwe retrospectively add new areas forto existingagreements agreementalready holderssubject withto an existing stageStage 2 offer. This is to ensure new areas are suitably assessed for sensitivities and constraints through the Stage 1 process. If you are an agreement holder at stageStage 2 and would like to extend the project area inyou linewill withneed thewritten agreement from your Woodland Creation Officer to add new rules,areas. youThe decision to allow this will needbe at the FC’s discretion and may result in you having to submit a new application tofor us.the new areas.

Biodiversity, habitats and environment

Existing native, semi-natural habitats are likely to have a high value for biodiversity, and for landscape and visual interest. This will need to be compared with the value of new woodland. The Forestry Commission does not support the conversion of priority habitats, such as deep peat or active raised bogs.

Where the proposed planting is on semi-natural habitat, the presumption is that the planting will be restricted to native broadleaved species or the semi-natural habitat will be retained as open ground,ground addingwithin to the forestwoodland’s mosaic. design. 

Find out more about woodland species, habitats protection and the Government’sgovernment’s principles for afforestation on or near to Priority Habitats. 

How it works

The funding will support you to gather and analyse the information that you need to make sure your proposal takes into account: 

• biodiversity  and geology
• soils and climate
• landscape 
• water 
• historic environment
• local stakeholders (to support your engagement with stakeholders, please share this letter to request stakeholder input (MS Word Document, 95 KB) with them when you contact them for information to explain how their response will be used)

You’ll have to develop a UK Forestry Standard-compliant plan for woodland creation that shows any constraints and opportunities, and how these are accounted for. Completing the Woodland Creation Planning Grant Application and Plan will help you do this.

If your land is already under an existing grant agreement, then your woodland creation design plan must cover the impact of tree planting on that agreement. 

You’ll receive payments in two stagesin 2 stages andas you complete the Woodland Creation Planning Grant Application and Plan. You may also be eligible for Supplementary paymentssupplementary payments (see below). 

Creating a Woodland Creation Design Plan

You will need to complete thisthe Woodland Creation DesignPlanning PlanGrant TemplateApplication (MSand WordPlan Document, 242 KB) in two2 stages: 

Stage 1

Stage 1 requires you1  requires you to complete a desk-based exercise, identifying constraints and opportunities for your site. You will compile your data in stageStage 1 tabs of the Woodland Creation DesignPlanning PlanGrant Template andApplication and Plan and give supporting documents, including at least a site context map.

If the Forestry Commission decides there’sthere is potential for planting woodland on the proposed sitesite, thenyou you’llwill be offered a stageStage 2 payment. 

Stage 2

Do not start work on stageStage 2 of the Woodland Creation DesignPlanning Grant Application and Plan templateuntil until you you have a stageStage 2 offer from the Forestry Commission. 

You get a stageStage 2 payment for producing a Woodland Creation Design Plan by completing stagecompleting the Stage 2 of thetabs template.of  the Application and Plan. You will find a list of required maps and plans in the Woodland Creation DesignPlanning PlanGrant Template.Application and Plan. This includes:

• a site context map
• a site appraisal plan
• a design concept plan and final design plan 

If stageStage 1 of the Woodland Creation DesignPlanning PlanGrant TemplateApplication and Plan indicates that there’sthere is potential for woodland at the site then you will get an offer of stageStage 2 funding, including any supplementary payments where relevant.

The Forestry Commission makes the stageStage 2 payment on approval of your completed Woodland Creation DesignPlanning PlanGrant TemplateApplication and Plan and the documentation that supports it. 

The Woodland Creation DesignPlanning PlanGrant TemplateApplication and Plan and supporting documents required at stageStage 1 and stageStage 2 will demonstrate a design process, from a survey of the site’s key features to analysis of how they will affect the proposed woodland’s design to synthesis, bringing this information together into an informed design for the woodland.

All elements of the woodland creation design plan you finally submit (including any specials reports and surveys funded through a supplementary payment) should be clearly referred to in your Woodland Creation Design Plan, showing how those elements of survey and analysis were brought together to produce a UK Forestry Standard-compliant plan thatfor is suited to your site in particular. site. 

Supplementary payments

If the information you collect during stageStage 1 indicates that a more detailed assessment is needed (such as a peat depth survey, or an archaeological survey) then you can apply for a supplementary payment. Where appropriate, the work required under the supplementary payment will need to follow the approach set out in the appropriate standard brief(s).

The current standard brief(s) are:

• Peatpeat Depthdepth Surveysurvey
• Breedingbreeding birds
• Vegetationvegetation / habitats

These standard brief(s) are available on our Natural environment survey and assessment instructions.

We also have a standard brief for Deer Impact Assessment surveys for woodland creation.

• Archaeology – analytical survey
• Archaeology – geophysical survey

To request a copy of a Standard Brief for Archaeology please email WCPG@forestrycommission.gov.ukWCPG@forestrycommission.gov.uk.

To apply for a supplementary payment complete the  supplementarySupplementary paymentsPayments applicationApplication formForm. You should submit this with Stage 1 of the Woodland Creation DesignPlanning Template.Grant YouApplication cannotand Plan. In exceptional circumstances you can apply for supplementary payments before you have been offered stageStage 1 funding. 

Howfunding toat apply

You’ll needThe the landowner’s consent and signature if you don’t own the land, and the Forestry Commission may askcontact toyou see your tenancy agreement to confirmfinalise yoursome landdetails managementbefore responsibilities.

Inmaking parta 2decision ofon the application form (below), you’ll need to outline your planting proposals, and the Forestry Commission may contact you to finalise some details. application.

Submit an application form

Complete the application form and return it by email to: WCPG@forestrycommission.gov.uk

If you can’t apply by email send paper copies to:

Give consent if you appoint an agent

If you decide to appoint an agent to apply for funding on your behalf then you must complete a Forestry Commission agent authority form to give your consent. 

Further funding

Once you have a completed and approved woodland creation design plan, you can use this to apply for: 

• England Woodland Creation Offer
• Woodland creation grant: Countryside Stewardship

Appeals

You can appeal against a Forestry Commission decision. 

Contact the Forestry Commission

Contact the WCPG National team for more information WCPG@forestrycommission.gov.ukWCPG@forestrycommission.gov.uk or your local Woodland Creation Officer.

Forest Research