We recognise that planting and managing woodlands costs money and in response we offer a number of grants with the aim of helping to create and manage woodlands and to sustain and increase the delivery of public benefits.
For information on the types of grant that may be available to create a new woodland or for the stewardship of existing woodlands visit the national England Woodland Grant Scheme (EWGS). EWGS grants are paid as a contribution towards the cost of providing public benefit through woodlands - eligibility criteria apply.
English Woodland Grant Scheme
EWGS is now open and our latest Prospectus, setting out the full grant provisions for financial year 2009/2010, will be published once finalised. For further details, please use the left hand links or look at the national England Woodland Grant Scheme .
Work carried out with grant support must meet the criteria set out in The UK Forestry Standard (PDF 974kb), the chief guide to the practice of sustainable forestry.
Read the North West Region's EWGS e-update for further information.
Other funding sources
In addition to EWGS, there are other funding sources:
- Environmental Stewardship (managed by Natural England) provides grants for environmental management, including woodland. The FC has produced further guidance available from the Funding for Farm Woodlands in England page
- Short Rotation Coppice can be funded via the Energy Crops Scheme (also managed by Natural England)
- Funding for social and economic investment in woodland is available from Regional Development Agencies, under Axis 1 & 3 of the Rural Development Plan for England (RDPE) There are a variety of other funding sources available for woodland creation and management. The Royal Forestry Society has produced a guide called Grants for Trees that lists over 50 funding sources
Legacy schemes
There is information about the Woodland Grant Scheme (WGS) if you need to make a claim or an amendment. This scheme is now closed so new applicants should follow the EWGS link.
Details on Farm Woodland Premium Schemes (FWPS) and Farm Woodland Schemes (FWS) are available through our national pages.
