LV5: Pasture pumps and associated pipework

Find out about eligibility and requirements for the pasture pumps and associated pipework item.

From:
Rural Payments Agency and Natural England
Published
2 April 2015
Last updated
3 February 2025 — See all updates
Grant type:
Capital item
Land use:
Livestock management, Uplands and Water quality
Tiers or standalone items:
Higher Tier, Mid Tier and Standalone capital items
Funding (per unit per year):
£201 to £300

This item is part of Capital Grants. You must read the Capital items: guidance for applicants and agreement holders to understand the rules and how to apply.

How much you’ll be paid 

£295.90 per pump.

How this item benefits the environment

Providing livestock with an alternative to drinking from watercourses reduces bank erosion, sediment pollution and the faecal contamination of watercourses.

Where you can use this item 

You can use this item either:  

  • in areas targeted for the reduction of water pollution caused by farming, where livestock are excluded from stream or surface waters
  • to encourage grazing which helps to manage and restore habitats (in Higher Tier with the agreement of Natural England)

You cannot use this item to replace existing equipment in the same location.

What you must do to use this item

You must:

  • install a low-lift, animal-operated pasture pump
  • secure the pump to robust, preserved timber, for example to a sleeper or a post
  • construct a hardstanding area around the pump of at least 1 square metre (m2)
  • dig the hardstanding area to a depth of at least 150 millimetres (mm), or down to a naturally occurring hard surface
  • compact hardcore on a geotextile liner to a depth of at least 150mm
  • edge the hardstanding area with preserved timber (at least 150mm by 50mm)
  • use medium-density polyethylene pipework with an external diameter of at least 25mm
  • make sure all the joints are watertight and made from brass or plastic

 Evidence you must keep 

You must keep and provide with your claim:

  • photographs of the site during the different stages of construction or contracts, invoices or other documents confirming the technical specification for the completed works
  • photographs of the completed works in place and installed

You must also keep and provide on request:

  • any consents or permissions connected with the work
  • receipted invoices or bank statements where a receipted invoice is unavailable
  • photographs of site before works start

Read the record keeping and site visit requirements in the Agreement holder’s guide: Capital Grants, Higher Tier capital grants and Protection and Infrastructure grants for more information.

Other items you can use with this item

You can use this item with these items:

LV7: Livestock troughs

LV8: Pipework associated with livestock troughs

Advice to help you use this item

The following advice may help you to use this item, but you do not have to follow it to get paid. It’s not part of this item’s requirements.   

Use the pump effectively

A pump can lift water up to around 5m high and pump to up to 50m. One  pump can provide 10 to 15 cattle with water. You may need to train livestock to use the pump.

During winter you should:

  • remove the pump and store it to protect against frost damage
  • make sure the pump is available for inspection after it’s removed

British Standards

Check to make sure the work meets relevant British Standards.

Updates to this page

Published 2 April 2015
Last updated 3 February 2025 + show all updates

  1. General improvement for clarity.

  2. Removal of text confirming LV5 Pasture pumps and associated pipework availability under Countryside Stewardship Capital Grants (SFI pilot), as the SFI Capital offer is no longer available.

  3. 'Where to use this item' section updated to include detail on SFI pilot.

  4. Added in links to Capital Grants manual as this option is now available for Capital Grants

  5. Information updated for applications in 2016.

  6. First published.

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