Accredited official statistics

Area of land in agri-environment schemes

Updated 10 December 2024

Applies to England

Last updated: 2024

Latest data available: 2022

Introduction

This indicator measures the area of land under agri-environment schemes categorised into two groups: higher-level/targeted and entry-level. Agri-environment schemes require land managers, including farmers, to implement environmentally beneficial management and to demonstrate good environmental practice on their land. The higher-level or targeted schemes promote environmental management aimed at: conserving wildlife; maintaining and enhancing landscape quality and character; protecting the historic environment and natural resources; and promoting public access and understanding of the countryside. The entry-level type schemes aim to encourage large numbers of land managers to implement simple and effective environmental management on their land.

Data for this indicator can be found in the published datafile. We also have a similar indicator at the UK level.

Type of indicator

State indicator

Type of official statistics

Official statistic

Assessment of change

Area of land under higher-level or targeted agri-environment schemes:

Assessment	Time period	Result
Long term	1987 to 2022	Improving
Short term	2017 to 2022	Improving
Latest year	2021 to 2022	Increased

Notes on the indicator assessment

Long- and short-term assessments are based on a 3% rule of thumb. Where possible, the base years for these assessments use a three-year average. See Assessing Indicators.

An assessment of entry-level schemes is not included for this indicator. From 2020, land is covered by only two schemes in this category (Sustainable Farming Incentive, SFI (including the 2021 pilot and SFI 2022); entry-level Stewardship Scheme (including Upland entry-level Scheme since 2010), ELS). ELS closed to new applicants in December 2014, and SFI piloted in 2021 before launching fully in 2022. As a result, there are not sufficient open schemes categorised as entry-level to provide a robust assessment of change. Therefore, we have only provided an assessment of the higher-level agri-environment schemes. Additionally, the categorisation of SFI as an entry-level scheme is under review.

Key results

Fluctuations in areas of land under agri-environment agreements over time can occur as a result of the introduction of new schemes and the ending of previous scheme agreements. See the Technical Annex for details on the opening and expiry of different schemes across the four countries in the UK.

In 2022, the total area of land in higher-level or targeted agri-environment agreements in England was 2.3 million hectares. Figure 1 shows the area of land under the previous higher-level, targeted schemes and the new Countryside Stewardship schemes. The expiring schemes include the HLS strand of ES and the ‘Classic’ schemes, namely Environmentally Sensitive Areas and the previous Countryside Stewardship Scheme. The chart shows that the area under targeted agri-environment schemes has gradually increased over time.

Figure 1: Area of land under expiring and new targeted agri-environment scheme agreements in England, 1987 to 2022

Source: Defra, Natural England

Notes about Figure 1

• Higher-level schemes have stricter criteria for qualification than entry-level agri-environment schemes.
• Schemes are not directly comparable as they have different reporting requirements and different objectives.
• Systematic data collection started in 1992; areas from 1987 to 1991 are estimated.
• Higher-level Stewardship Scheme includes Freestanding HLS and HLS linked to ELS.
• HT and MT new Countryside Stewardship schemes (HT, Higher-Tier; MT, Mid-Tier) – the area for 2016 includes some double-counting of areas due to options occupying the same area. Without double-counting, this total area is 76,498 hectares.

In 2022, the total area of land in entry-level agreements was 1.4 million hectares. Figure 2 shows the areas under the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) and ELS. The area of land in ELS has shown a significant increase since pilot schemes were introduced in 2003/04, reaching around 6.5 million hectares in 2013. The introduction of the SFI, including the SFI pilot in 2021 and SFI 2022, is responsible for the overall increase in area covered by entry-level schemes from 2021 to 2022. Due to changes in eligibility requirements for SFI since the pilot stage, as well as the options available for farmers to take up, the categorisation of SFI as an entry-level scheme is under review; land covered by SFI from 2023 onwards may no longer be categorised as entry-level in future updates of this indicator.

Higher-level agreements may be underpinned by an entry-level scheme, therefore the areas of land in higher-level and entry-level schemes cannot be added to provide a figure for total area under all schemes.

Figure 2: Area of land under expiring and new entry-level agri-environment scheme agreements in England, 1987 to 2022

Source: Defra, Natural England

Notes about Figure 2

• Entry-type schemes have less strict criteria for qualification than the higher-level schemes shown in the previous chart.
• The area under ELS includes ELS, Organic entry-level Stewardship (OELS), Uplands entry-level Stewardship (UELS) from 2010, and HLS linked to ELS. Rotational options are not included in the data.

Further Detail

Relevance

Agriculture is a major land use in England and rapid changes to agricultural practice in the past have been linked to declines in wildlife, such as farmland birds. Since 1987, several voluntary agri-environment schemes have been introduced that provide payments to farmers to protect and enhance biodiversity, landscapes and historic features, and to promote public access.

Web links for further information

• Natural England: Environmental Stewardship; New Countryside Stewardship
• Defra Statistics: Agriculture in the UK

Acknowledgements

Thank you to the many people who have contributed by providing data and to the many colleagues who have helped produce this indicator.

Technical Annex

Background

The agri-environment schemes included in this indicator have been categorised into two groups:

• Entry-level schemes have a simple set of prescriptions providing basic environmental protection and enhancement, where the whole farm area may contribute to the indicator.
• Higher-level or targeted schemes protect or restore land, focusing on parts of the farm or land-holding that are of high environmental/biodiversity value or potential.

It is possible for land to be in both an entry-level type and a higher-level scheme. For example, the majority of HLS agreements in England are underpinned by an ELS agreement, therefore the areas of land in higher-level and entry-level schemes cannot be summed to produce a figure for total area under all schemes. Since the mid-1990s there has been a steady increase in UK land under agri-environment scheme management.

The area of land covered by higher-level schemes fluctuates between years as a result of changes to schemes: expiry of agreements and uptake of new ones; and amendments to existing agreements or land transferring from one farmer to another.

In 1992, there were 175,000 hectares of land in England in Environmentally Sensitive Areas (ESA) and the previous Countryside Stewardship Scheme (CSS). These were higher-level agreements or targeted schemes. At their peak, in 2004, there was around 1.2 million hectares in these schemes.

Between 2005 and the end of 2014, agri-environment activities were promoted through Environmental Stewardship (ES), replacing CSS and ESAs. This scheme had 2 strands; Entry-Level Stewardship (ELS) and Higher-Level Stewardship (HLS). Whilst ELS encouraged farmers and other land managers to undertake a broad range of activities to provide environmental benefits, HLS was a more targeted scheme. ELS agreements last for 5 years, whereas HLS agreements are 10 years in duration.

The ES scheme closed to new agreements in December 2014. Existing agreements continue to be honoured until they expire and extensions are being offered until land managers can transition to Environmental Land Management schemes. Between the end of 2017 and the end of 2022, the number of ES agreements fell from 19,000 to 7,000. This decline was largely associated with ELS only agreements.

In 2015, a new agri-environment scheme, Countryside Stewardship, was introduced, replacing ES. The first agreements went live in 2016. This is a more targeted and scheme. The strands of the scheme reported here are Mid-Tier and Higher-Tier. At the end of 2022, uptake of Countryside Stewardship consisted of around 18,000 agreements managing just over 1.4 million hectares of land, however, agri-environment scheme options may not cover the total area of the land parcel measured, therefore this figure is likely to be an overestimate.

From 2021, the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) was introduced and is an additional agri-environment scheme classed as entry-type. The SFI was piloted in 2021 and fully launched in 2022, to support the economy while achieving the goals of the 25 Year Environment Plan and commitment to net zero emissions by 2050. The scheme pays farmers to manage their land in an environmentally sustainable way. Introduction of the SFI is responsible for the latest year increase in overall land covered by entry-type schemes. Due to changes in eligibility requirements for SFI since the pilot stage, as well as the options available for farmers to take up, the categorisation of SFI as an entry-level scheme is under review.

Fluctuations in areas of land under agri-environment agreements over time can occur as a result of the introduction of new schemes and the ending of previous scheme agreements.

Overall agri-environment scheme coverage in England, December 2022:

• Environmental Stewardship (ES) including ELS, ELS-HLS, HLS, ELS pilot and organic equivalents: Number of agreements: 7,300; Area: 1,141,000 hectares
• Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI): Number of agreements: 2,200; Area: 358,000 hectares
• New Countryside Stewardship (mid-tier): Number of agreements: 14,700; Area: 948,000 hectares
• New Countryside Stewardship (higher-tier): Number of agreements: 2,900; Area: 466,000 hectares

Caveats and limitations

Total area covered by agri-environment schemes is lower than the sum of the areas for each scheme as land can be covered by multiple schemes concurrently. In 2022, in England, under the current categorisation of schemes, for higher-level schemes the proportion of land under both CS and HLS (including ELS linked to HLS) was around 0.4% of the total area covered. The proportion of land under multiple schemes increases dramatically from 2023 data onwards, resulting in the decision to review the existing methodology for future updates of this indicator.

The figures for land under agri-environment schemes are based on the total area per land parcel for each scheme option. However, agri-environment scheme options may not cover the total area of the land parcel, therefore the figures included in this indicator are likely to be an overestimate of actual land covered by agri-environment schemes. Adaptation to this limitation is also being considered in the ongoing review of this indicator’s methodology.

In addition, due to the evolving eligibility requirements for schemes included in this indicator, the current categorisation of schemes into higher-level/targeted and entry-level is also being considered in the methodology review.

Recent developments

Due to changes in eligibility requirements for agri-environment schemes included in this indicator and increased instances of land falling under multiple schemes simultaneously from 2023 data onwards, this indicator has not been updated to include 2023 data. To respond to these developments, the methodology for this indicator is under review. We aim to publish the updated indicator incorporating the revised methodology in the 2025 update of the England Biodiversity Indicators publication.

Development plan

Due to changes in eligibility requirements for agri-environment schemes included in this indicator and increased instances of land falling under multiple schemes simultaneously from 2023 data onwards, this indicator has not been updated to include 2023 data. To respond to these developments, the methodology for this indicator is under review. By the 2025 publication of this indicator, we intend to:

• Review the methodology to better account of overlapping scheme coverage.
• Review the methodology to better account for discrepancies between whole land parcel estimates and option area estimates.