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Natural England: Environmental Stewardship - Higher Level Stewardship

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Farm Environment Plan - Historic Environment

Landscape, Burneside, Kendal

In March 2005 Environmental Stewardship  (ES) was launched by Defra. This is a new agri-environment scheme, designed to deliver conservation and good management of the landscape, and replaces two earlier schemes. A high proportion of the North West's farmland is expected to come under a stewardship agreement. ES operates at two levels: Entry Level  available to all farmers, and a Higher Level  targeted at areas and features of high priority. This should lead to an improvement in the protection of the historic environment and the maintenance and enhancement of landscape character.



Farm Environment Plan

The Farm Environment Plan (FEP) is a structured survey of all environmental features on a farm and is a pre-requisite for the Higher Level Scheme (HLS). Completing a FEP involves identifying any features of historical, wildlife, resource protection, access and landscape interest: and making an assessment of their condition. This will then help to determine a suitable level of management which could be achieved through HLS. It will also consider the potential for creating environmental features and habitats; improving public access and managing land for flood management and natural resource protection. All HLS applications to Natural England must be accompanied by a completed FEP, and as a FEP is a detailed study, many applicants will choose to employ a consultant to carry out a FEP on their behalf.



Farm Environment Plan and the Historic Environment

The FEP consultation enables us to inform, advise and suggest appropriate management options for the historic environment to the FEP Surveyor, who in turn compiles the FEP adding to it any additional historic features found during the course of the farm survey. Every farm is an historic environment in miniature. Each is the product of generations of farmers living on and working the land. Some historic landscapes and their features may be more significant than others, either because of their age or rarity, or because of their role in shaping the local character and distinctiveness of an area. Their management and conservation has to be based on an understanding of their significance. The value of the FEP to the Historic Environment Record (HER) is that it collects historic environment information on a whole farm basis, giving an overview of all the archaeological sites, historic buildings and other historic landscape features present on the landholding. This will, in turn, better inform the HER, enabling a greater understanding of Cumbria's Historic Landscape. This should result in better management, preservation and conservation of the historic environment of the landholding and of the broader landscape in which the farm is located.



Costs of providing Historic Environment information

Natural England provides grants to assist with FEP's including sums to meet the costs of obtaining historic environment information. For an area of under 50 hectares the cost is £75 per search and for any area over 50 hectares £150. For further information from Natural England on Farm Environment Plan's, follow the link below

Natural England Farm Environment Plan Handbook

For further details about Higher Level Stewardship FEP consultations provided by Cumbria's Historic Environment Record contact:

 

Name
Mark Brennand
Address
Cumbria County Council
County Offices
Kendal
LA9 4RQ