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GrantEngland

Landscape Recovery

Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) / Natural England

Description

The most ambitious tier of England's Environmental Land Management offer, funding large-scale (minimum 500 hectares, though usually delivered by a partnership of landowners rather than one farm), long-term (20-30 year) land-use change projects — rewilding, wetland and woodland creation, and river restoration — with development-phase grants of up to £750,000 and implementation funding typically in the range of £200-£900 per hectare per year once a project reaches delivery. As of August 2026, no round is currently open to new applicants: round 2 closed for applications in September 2023, and while Defra approved 34 second-wave projects (with the first moving into delivery in August 2025, representing over £55 million of investment) and has signalled further rounds during 2026, a confirmed opening date for round 3 has not yet been published. Included here so it is visible ahead of a future round, not because a business can apply to it right now.

Amount

Development-phase grants of up to £750,000; implementation funding typically £200-£900 per hectare per year for projects of at least 500 hectares

Deadline

Rolling / no fixed deadline

Eligibility summary

  • Available in: England.
  • Applicant must be a registered business.
  • Most relevant to: Agriculture & Fisheries.
Notes
No round is currently open — check the Defra Farming Blog (defrafarming.blog.gov.uk) or the gov.uk Landscape Recovery guidance for when round 3 opens. Distinct from Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (individual-holding agreements, currently open subject to invitation) and SFI26 (individual-holding, currently open) — both separate entries in this directory.
Requirement
Groups of farmers, land managers, and other partners in England able to bring together at least 500 hectares for a long-term, landscape-scale environmental project; open on a competitive, invitation-round basis rather than continuously.

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How to apply

No application route is currently open. Monitor the Defra Farming Blog or the gov.uk Landscape Recovery guidance page for the announcement of round 3.

View official source

Last verified: 23 August 2026. See the footer disclaimer — this is general information, not financial or tax advice.