CAPITAL GRANTS FOR TOURISM IN WALES APPLICATIONS NOW OPEN

Farmers and businesses in Wales looking to develop a tourism enterprise can receive funding from the Welsh Government’s Micro and Small Business Fund (MSBF) which has reopened for applications.

The MSBF is an investment fund targeting eligible capital investment projects in the tourism sector in Wales. It can be used either to upgrade existing or create new high quality product.

The fund is available for micro to small size businesses with fewer than 50 employees and offers  support of between £25,000 and £500,000 for projects that create and safeguard jobs, realise economic benefit and growth and deliver quality, innovation and a sense of place.

The fund priorities include:

• high quality, innovative, reputation changing tourism products
• luxury hotels (existing expansions, upgrades and new hotels)
• all weather, all year, attractions
• flagship attractions
• innovative activity experiences
• distinctively Welsh visitor focussed food experiences
• top end and innovative glamping and camping experiences
• spa and high quality leisure facilities
• innovative cultural or heritage related projects
• distinctive and high quality inns, B&B’s, guest accommodation products
• unusual places to stay

“There is a two-stage application process starting with an Expression of Interest and if this is successful you will be invited to make a full application,” said Kathryn Williams, director of Davis Meade Property Consultants, Oswestry.

For further information visit https://businesswales.gov.wales/tourism/finance#guides-tabs--2 or contact Kathryn Willams at Davis Meade Property Consultants on  01691 659658 / 07971 583638, email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com

 

The Severn Trent Environmental Protection Scheme (STEPS)  APPLICATIONS NOW OPEN

The application window opens on November 1 for farmers and land managers in Severn Trent Water (STW) region to apply for grants of up to £5,000 to match-fund infrastructure investment and land management items.

The Severn Trent Environmental Protection Scheme (STEPS) is funded by STW and delivered in partnership with local Wildlife Trusts, River Trusts the Woodland Trust, The Wye and Usk Foundation and South Staffordshire Water. Farmers can apply to fund environmental projects on farm, from the pre-defined list of funding options.

Grants are awarded on a competitive basis with applicants demonstrating a clear water quality benefit to the issues of concern in that area being most likely to be successful.

Kathryn Williams, land agents with Davis Meade Property Consultants at Oswestry, said that to qualify for the scheme farmers must:

• farm or have land within a Severn Trent priority catchment
• farm (either owned or leased) a minimum of three hectares of land

The funds can help with projects ranging from cover crops, to fencing, to pesticide wash-down areas, and biobeds/biofilter and this year the scheme includes new options focusing on biodiversity such as hedgerow and woodland planting, pond management plan and wildflower meadow creation.

Items that aren’t listed in the STEPS booklet can be considered if they are innovative and support the wider goals of the programme. Some items can be funded for two years (£10,000).

“We are advising farmers to check with us or their local STW agricultural advisor to see if they are within a target area and eligible to claim,” she said.

“STEPS runs until 2020 and the current application period is open from November 1, 2019 until January 31, 2020 with grants awarded to successful applicants in March 2020. Work must be completed by 1 March 2020.”

For more information visit www.stwater.co.uk/steps or contact Kathryn Williams at Davis Meade Property Consultants, Oswestry on 01691 659658 / 07971 583638 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com

 

Farming Connect Funding APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

The Sustainable Management scheme will provide financial support for a range of activities that will improve the

The current round of Farming Connect Training Funding ends on the 1st November 2019 at 5pm.

Up to 80% funding available across approximately 80 training courses. 

If you wish to apply for funding support towards additional training courses, you will need to update your Personal Development Plan (PDP) and submit an application for funding support.

For further information or guidance on this please follow this link:

https://businesswales.gov.wales/farmingconnect/face-face-training-courses

or contact the Farming Connect Service Centre on 08456 000 813.

 

Welsh Sustainable Management scheme APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

The Sustainable Management scheme will provide financial support for a range of activities that will improve the management of our natural resources and in doing so contribute to the well-being of our rural communities.

The scheme offers grants to collaborative groups looking to:

• improve our natural resources and the benefits they provide
• take action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
• improve business and community resilience to the impacts of climate change.

Grants can range from a minimum of £10,000 to help start up and facilitate new collaborations through to landscape-scale ambition co-ordinating actions and input from several parties to achieve lasting benefits across our communities. Each window has a maximum of £5m for investment.

 The maximum grant rate for any individual investment project is 100% of the total cost.

 The scheme is open to a wide range of collaborations made up of a variety of individual and organisations including:

• small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large businesses, education or research establishments
• farmers, foresters, other land managers
• community or voluntary groups (inclusive of all non government organisations) associations of owners, community woodlands, and  trusts
• local authorities.

The scheme is open now until 8^th August 2019.

For further details on the application criteria please contact Kathryn Williams on 07971 583638 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com

 

Welsh Food Business Investment Scheme APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

The expression of interest window for round 7 of the Food Business Investment scheme is now open.

The FBIS covers capital investments in processing equipment along with some associated costs and supports projects that offer clear and quantifiable benefits to primary producers, either directly or indirectly, in the agriculture sectors providing the raw materials.  Micro, Small or Medium Enterprises (SME’s) are a particular priority for support.

The scheme offers grants to collaborative groups looking to:

• erect new buildings
• refurbish old premises
• buy eligible new or second hand equipment (certain conditions apply)

Examples of the types of projects and activities that might be supported are:

• a group of potato producers may want to upgrade their processing facilities and rationalise and amalgamate their storage and grading facilities into a larger, more economical unit with better environmental control
• a vegetable processing company might want to improve its facilities to meet customer requirements and improve its handling of waste water
• a livestock market may wish to improve its lairage facilities and other handling/holding facilities to raise the standards of animal welfare, make improvements to sale rings to speed up sales, or to improve its effluent handling
• an abattoir might wish to expand its primal cutting operation to accommodate the needs of its customers, to build new chilling or other carcass processing facilities, to introduce new processing lines for specific purposes, for example, slaughter for export, or to improve its effluent handling
• a meat /poultry processing company may want to make quality improvements to its products or expand into another area or move into more refined/specifically targeted packaging and improve its effluent treatment systems
• a small dairy business may wish to expand its cheese-making operation to take advantage of the growing market for speciality cheeses
• a cheese manufacturer may want to move into higher quality products such as mature cheeses or move into new areas such as blue cheese or improve its storage facilities and improve its waste and effluent handling.

The minimum grant threshold per enterprise for any individual investment project is £2,400

The maximum grant threshold per enterprise for any individual investment project is £5,000,000.

Where both the input and the output are agricultural products the maximum grant rates are as follows:

• SMEs - up to 40% of the total investment cost regardless of location.
• large Enterprises – up to 20% of the total investment cost regardless of location.

If other EU or UK public funds are obtained to support the costs of a project they will be discounted against the Food Business Investment grant. 

The scheme is open to applications from a wide range of businesses involved in primary and/or secondary processing of agricultural products, such as:

• sole traders
• voluntary sector organisations
• private and public limited companies (SME and Large Enterprises)
• farm businesses that want to process their own agricultural products
• new businesses, including start-up businesses.

The scheme is open now until 2^nd July 2019.

For further details on the application criteria please contact Kathryn Williams on 07971 583638 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com

 

Welsh Sustainable Production Grant APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

The second expression of interest window for the Sustainable Production Grant (SPG) will open on 4th March and close on 12th April 2019. Eligibility for the Welsh Government’s SPG requires a partner in the business to attend a Sustainable Farming event organised by Farming Connect (FC). The individual attending must be registered as a business partner with Farming Connect and Rural Payments Wales.

 

Farm Business Grant - 6th Round APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

Farm Business Grant - 5th Round APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

Farm Business Grant - 4th Round APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

Farm Business Grant - 3rd Round APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

Farm Business Grant - 2nd Round APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

Farm Business Grant - 1st Round APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

The sixth expression of interest window for the Farm Business Grant (FBG) will open on 4th March and close on 12th April 2019. Eligibility for the Welsh Government’s FBG requires a partner in the business to attend a Farming for the Future event organised by Farming Connect (FC).  For further information about the events and how to book your place see the Farming Connect and Welsh Government websites.   The individual attending must be registered as a business partner with Farming Connect and Rural Payments Wales.

The Farm Business Grant (FBG) helps farmers in Wales to improve the economic and environmental performance of their agricultural holdings. 

The grant provides a financial contribution towards capital investments in equipment and machinery that have been pre-identified as offering clear and quantifiable benefits to farm enterprises. 

£40m funding will be available over 4 years. The minimum grant available is £3,000, and the maximum is £12,000. 

You are now able to submit Expression of Interests in multiple windows with a minimum £3,000 threshold per application. The maximum overall threshold is £12,000.

 Only one application will be approved per business throughout the lifetime of the Scheme.

The FBG covers capital investments in equipment and machinery that have been pre-identified as offering clear and quantifiable benefits to your farm enterprise. The capital items have been specified along with a standardised cost. 

The scheme is discretionary. The amount of grant offered would relate to individual circumstances and would always be the minimum amount necessary, to allow the investments to go ahead.

The items available through the scheme cover the following five themes:

·         Animal Health
·         Performance and Genetics 
·         Crop Management 
·         Resource Efficiency 
·         Energy Efficiency 
·         ICT

Farms may apply in more than one application round but only one grant award will be allowed per farm under this scheme.

 

Welsh Start Up Grant APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

Farmers in Wales under the age of 40 are being given a second chance to take advantage of the Welsh Government’s £6 million funding package available to help them develop their businesses. The grant will provide £40,000 to 150 farmers (including those who were successful in the first round) as part of a Young People into Agriculture Scheme. 

“We thought that there would only be one opportunity to apply but those that missed out on applying in the first round in June or those people who did not submit sufficient supporting evidence are now being given another chance to apply,” explained Kathryn Williams of Davis Meade Property Consultants. 

“We don’t yet know all the details but we believe the rules will be the same as those for the first round. The second round will open on August 1 and close on August 29. We are therefore urging those who were rejected in the first round to re-assess their application if appropriate or for those applying for the first time to carefully read all of the scheme eligibility rules as there are a number of pieces of supporting evidence that must be submitted.” 

The funding can be used as working capital, to purchase land or erect buildings, buy machinery or stock etc. and will be paid to successful applicants in three instalments. We presume these instalment dates will not be the same as those for the successful first round applicants but will follow a similar format. 

Applicants must be able to show that they have the skills to be self-motivated to drive their businesses forward and also have a keen interest in the wider agricultural industry. As a part of the funding agreement applicants will also have to meet key performance indicators that will be agreed as part of their contract. 

“Expressions of interest can be made from August 1 to August 29. Points will be awarded according to the type of business, business structure, academic qualifications, level of continuing professional development and the strength of the business plan. Applications will then be ranked according to how they meet the selection criteria until the maximum number (150) is reached,” Kathryn explained. 

“In the first round only people who were setting up as head of a holding for the first time by September 1, 2018, or who started as head of a holding for the first time in the 12 months prior to the 1 April were eligible.” 

For more information on the funding please contact Kathryn Williams at the Oswestry office of Davis Meade Property Consultants on 01691 659658 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com

 

Glastir Small Grants: Water APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

Small Grants is a programme of capital works available to farming businesses across Wales to carry out projects that will help to improve water quality and reduce risk of flooding.

Capital Works items will be identified as ‘Main’ and ‘Supportive’ Work(s), which together form a ‘Project’. The Project will be:

• The Main Capital Work, which will address the theme objectives

• The Supportive Capital Work(s), which will allow the Main Capital Work to be undertaken, e.g. New Hedge Planting (option 900), is the Main Capital Work, while Post and Wire Fencing (option 594), to protect the new hedge from damage, would be a Mandatory Supportive Capital Work, and Hardwood Timber Field Gates (option 599) would be an Optional Supportive Capital Work.

The Water Theme offers Capital Works that have been chosen for their broad and general environmental benefits and their ability to deliver the Welsh Government’s ambitions to improve water quality and reduce flood risk.

Expression of Interest (EoI)

To enable the Welsh Government to select those EoIs that offer the highest environmental value for money, all EoIs will be scored and ranked.  Contracts will only be offered to the highest ranking EoIs.

The theme of this Glastir Small Grants Window is ‘Water’ and the available activities have been chosen for their ability to contribute to improving water quality or reducing flood risk.

Every eligible land parcel in Wales has been assigned a score for each available activity. This score is made up of the following;

A Glastir Small Grants Foundation Score:  one point has been assigned to each eligible field parcel to recognise that all land can contribute to the aims of the scheme.

Target objectives:  a number of target objectives have been identified across Wales. These objectives include habitat improvements for wildlife species such as water voles that depend on clean water.

Another objective includes reducing flood risk in river catchments that are prone to flooding.  These areas will benefit from planting trees which will absorb high volumes of water and therefore reduce the amount of water draining off farmland.

Each land parcel has been awarded a different number of points depending on the specific activity and the combination of target objectives it overlaps with.

 

Glastir Woodland Creation APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

The sixth window for Expressions of Interest (EOI) in Glastir Woodland Creation will opened on 26 February 2018 and close at midnight on 06 April 2018.

Glastir Woodland Creation provides financial support for new planting. Financial support is also available for planting trees in areas that continue to be grazed as part of an Agroforestry system i.e. combining agriculture and forestry.

To be eligible to express an interest under the fifth window, you will need to ensure that you have full management control for the land and that you are able to complete all capital works and planting by 31 March 2019.

The Glastir Woodland Creation EOI must be submitted through RPW Online.

For further details on the application criteria please contact Kathryn Williams on 07971 583638 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com

 

Glastir Small Grants: Carbon APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

The third window for Expressions of Interest (EOI) in Glastir Small Grants Carbon opened on 1 November 2017 and will close at 13 December 2017.

The Carbon Theme offers Capital Works that have been chosen for their broad and general environmental benefits and their ability to deliver the Welsh Government’s ambitions to increase carbon sequestration.

Milk Recording Scheme APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

The European Commission is providing financial support to farmers because of recent difficulties in dairy markets.

Funding is available to support farmers to carry out milk recording. Milk recording is a way to receive impartial information on the productivity, health and fertility of your herd. 

The information on the performance of each cow will help you make informed management decisions and increase profitability. Different types of services are available. These vary from a ‘do it yourself’ system to recording being carried out by a trained operator. 

The milk recording scheme is voluntary but limited to one payment per Customer Reference Number (CRN). Depending on the number of applications received the payment will be at least £750 to farmers who have, or take out, a milk recording contract. To qualify you must have an existing or new milk recording contract that meets the following condition:

• Individual cow milk recording samples being carried out a minimum of four times per year (these can be DIY or assisted). 

Application for the funding must be submitted by 19^th August 2017.

Any applications made after that date will not be eligible. Payments will be made to successful applicants by Rural Payments Wales (RPW) in September.

For further details on the application criteria please contact Kathryn Williams on 07971 583638 or email kathrynwilliams@dmpcuk.com

 

 

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