EWGS Terms and Conditions

 

The EWGS Terms and Conditions are an essential part of the EWGS contract. They set out what is expected of both the scheme holder (to comply with the contract) and the FC (to pay grant that is due). When applicants receive their draft contract it is important that the Terms and Conditions are read and understood before signing as the contract is a legally binding document.

The first version of EWGS Terms and Conditions was initially drawn up in 2005 and used until December 2007. During 2007 we started to produce revised Terms and Conditions based on new Rural Development Regulation requirements and our experience with EWGS coupled with a desire to make them simpler to understand. During November and December 2007 we consulted with the main private sector organisations such as Institute of Chartered Foresters, Confederation of Forest Industries and Country Land and Business Association using consultation Terms and Conditions. As a result of this consultation exercise we have produced a summary of the responses received/action taken and altered the Terms and Conditions where necessary.

Some of the notable changes to the T&Cs are:

• restructuring of the clauses into a more logical sequence
• felling approval for 5 years even if grant aid is for a shorter time
• a Woodland Management Grant claim is no longer required; signing and returning the contract will trigger the first and subsequent payments
• the change in Transfer of Obligations i.e. we always reclaim from the grant recipient. See Operations Note 14 (PDF 54kb) for further information
• cross checking and potential implications for double funding
• cross compliance and the implications for inspections by RPA plus potential effect on grant payments
• the ability to withhold grants if other RDPE contracts require a reclaim
• interest on reclaims to be calculated on the date of discovery of the problem, not the date of original payment
• introduction of penalties for overclaims and cross compliance breaches
• revised Freedom of Information clause
• requirement to erect plaques and/or boards acknowledging FC/Defra/EU funding for high value schemes

Documentation

Terms and Conditions - Final version (PDF 35kb)

Responses and action summary (PDF 18kb)
Consultation Terms and Conditions (PDF 28kb)