The Scottish Government

« Previous | Contents | Next »

Listen

WOODS IN AND AROUND TOWNS CHALLENGE FUND

Article 36(b)(vii)

Measure Code (227)

Rationale for Intervention

Community development, social inclusion and quality of life are core principles in the Scottish Forestry Strategy which seeks to give people an active role in the management and enjoyment of forests. The Woods in and Around Towns ( WIAT) programme was launched in 2005 and seeks to bring the benefits of forests close to where people live and work. It does this by supporting welcoming and well-managed woodlands that provide opportunities for exercise, learning, relaxation, and enjoyment.

Objectives of the measure

This measure aims to bring woods in and around significant settlements into active management in order to enhance opportunities for enjoyment of woodland and the positive contribution the woodland makes to economic and community regeneration of significant settlements.

Scope and actions

WIAT provides support for operations associated with woodland planning, silvicultural management, and enhancing recreational value of woodlands in and around significant settlements.

The measure operates through a Challenge Fund approach whereby potential beneficiaries put together bids for a woodland project or series of operations. This approach is suited to complex, multi-stakeholder situations which tend to exist in locations close to significant settlements. For example:

• A multi-stage approach can be adopted whereby a potential beneficiary first bids for a modest project such as developing a management plan through local participation and then bids for a more ambitious project in response to the plan.
• Woodland Officers can assist the potential beneficiary to develop the bid in partnership with other stakeholders.
• Potential beneficiary bids include the following:
• The rationale for the project including evidence of need, desired outcomes, and feasibility;
• Extract from the WIAT "grant calculator" providing a list of woodland operations to be funded and costings including co-funding - the measure funds actual costs calculated by the potential beneficiary (less any co-funding), which are assessed for reasonableness during the judging process;
• A detailed set of plans showing the location and nature of the works;
• Supporting information such as specifications for structures, evidence of local consultation, evidence of fit with local strategies, and justification for costings.
• Bid are assessed for eligibility against the following criteria (answer must be yes):
• Is potential beneficiary eligible (only private owners or their associations and municipalities and their associations are eligible).
• Is at least half the woodland within 1 km of a settlement of at least 2000 people?
• Is the woodland greater than 1 ha in area (can be made up of individual woods of at least 0.25 ha)?
• Is the scheme at least 40% woodland?
• Have stakeholders been involved or are plans to involve stakeholders evident?
• Is the scheme underpinned by a long-term management plan, or is this a proposed outcome of the funding?
• Are all the operations consistent with the UK Forestry Standard?

Eligible bids are then assessed by a panel of judges during periodic bidding rounds against criteria to test additionality, social and environmental benefits, local involvement, value for money (including co-funding brought in), long-term viability, and feasibility. Top quality bids are approved for funding, sometimes with special conditions, and a formal offer of funding is made. Recipients draw down funding in arrears as projects reach physical and financial milestones.

Payment regime

Period of agreement will be variable depending on the project/scheme of work, maximum 5 years. Payment against periodic claims. Maximum rate: normally 75%, a higher grant rate may be agreed for exceptional projects. Actual rate depends on co-funding drawn down by potential beneficiary. Lower Challenge Fund co-financing rate will be an advantage.

Payment would be in arrears dependent on progress against agreed operations. These may have to conform with, as yet, undefined payment windows.

For some significant items ( e.g.: operations above €14,600) a special condition may be set that the potential beneficiary supplies evidence of tendering when claiming the grant.

Definition of operations to be supported

This measure supports operations associated with woodland planning, silvicultural management, and enhancing recreational value of woodlands in and around towns.

Examples of operations that could be supported are:

Description of the link to commitments provided for in Article 36(b)(v) of Regulation ( EC) 1698/2005 -forest environment payments- or other environmental objectives

A separate measure on "Forest Environment Payments" under Article 36(b)(v) supports the management of forested land of high environmental value, in accordance with the principles of sustainable forest management; specifically, native woodlands, areas subject to high public pressure and areas managed using low-impact silvicultural systems.

The WIAT Challenge Fund will have significant environmental benefits but will be targeted at projects providing high public benefit in woods in and around towns. WIAT Challenge Funding will be to cover a set of additional specified and costed woodland operations required to deliver a project. Potential beneficiaries will be expected to demonstrate partnership funding for the project. This could include funding from other measures in the Rural Development Programme, including that for Forest Environment Payments, up to permitted intervention rates. Potential beneficiaries intending to use funding from other measures as part of the funding package will be required to obtain confirmation of this funding before an application for WIAT Challenge Funding can be considered.

The value of volunteer time will be eligible at a maximum standard rate(s) to be determined.

Description of the public amenity values to be enhanced

Bringing woods in and around towns into active management and creating networks of actively managed woodland will provide the following types of public amenity value:

• Stimulate economic regeneration in surrounding areas.
• Accommodate and mitigate the visual impact of the built environment.
• Contribute to quality of life and provide opportunities for exercise, learning, relaxation, and enjoyment.

Woods in and around towns, being close to where people live and work are particularly effective in delivering such benefits. By targeting funding for woodlands located in deprived communities (as defined by the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation), the WIAT Challenge Fund contributes to social and environmental justice.

Linkage of proposed measures with national/sub-national forest programmes or equivalent instruments and with the Community Forestry Strategy

This measure contributes to the objectives of the Scottish Forestry Strategy; in particular, the priority action on "Community Development, Contributing to quality of life". This action seeks to provide welcoming and well managed woodlands that contribute to quality of life and provide opportunities for exercise, learning, relaxation, and enjoyment, by building on the successful Woods In and Around Towns and similar initiatives.

The WIAT Challenge fund is also particularly relevant to the following objectives of the Community Forestry Strategy ( COM(88) 255):

• to help conserve and improve the environment;
• to extend the role of forests as natural settings for recreation.

Reference to the forest protection plans for areas classified as high or medium risk for forest fires and the elements ensuring conformity of proposed measures with these protection plans.

This measure will require that management operations be in compliance with the UK Forestry Standard as well as in some cases being subject to statutory consultation with the relevant authorities. In addition, high quality and extensive local community consultation will be expected. Consequently, there should be no significant negative impacts on other policy areas such as forest protection plans.

Transition arrangements (including estimated amount):

None.

Quantified targets for EU common indicators

$ Non-lead indicator on water quality (objective 21 pollution by nitrates and pesticides) will be proxied by % of water body length that is of good status for phosphates and is under development
* Relates to Rural Development Contracts Land Managers Options and Rural Priorities.
# All impact indicators will be estimated based on output and result indicators. Quantitative data will be supplemented by qualitative judgement on change. Biodiversity: As measured by farmland bird species population, complemented by additional data on other species. High nature value farmland: Indicator is not developed. The alternative indicator to be used is hectares of land cover under farmland, woodland, urban, other. Water Quality: Gross nutrient balances will be measured at a sample of farms. Supplemented by information on nitrates and phosphates. Climate change: Increases in production of renewable energy will be supplemented where appropriate with information on net carbon savings.

« Previous | Contents | Next »