GRH1: Manage rough grazing for birds
What you must do to get paid for this action and advice on how to do it.
This is an action in the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) scheme: expanded offer for 2024. You must read the SFI scheme information to understand the scheme rules and how to apply.
Duration
3 years
How much you’ll be paid
£121 per hectare (ha) per year
Action’s aim
This action’s aim is that there’s rough grassland with:
- a sward that has a range of heights
- areas of very short grass for bird feeding and nesting from the spring
- areas of surface water and wet features during the autumn and winter months
- minimal scrub, bracken and dense rush
The purpose of this is to provide habitats for upland breeding birds and other wildlife.
Where you can do this action
You can do this action on agricultural land located within a less favoured area (LFA) below the moorland line that’s:
- a land parcel of at least 2ha
- an eligible land type (as defined in section 5.1 ‘Eligible land types for SFI’ in the SFI scheme information)
- registered with an eligible land cover on your digital maps
- declared with a land use code which is compatible with the eligible land cover
To be eligible for this action, the land must be at least one of the following:
- ‘Upland breeding bird areas for CS’ – you can find this on the MAGIC website (it’s not the same as ‘Priority Species for CS Targeting’)
- adjacent to a site of special scientific interest (SSSI) – you can find this on the MAGIC website
- high or medium priority on the ‘Flood Risk Management Priorities (England)’ data layer – you can find this on the MAGIC website
- adjacent to or includes a watercourse
- part of the Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme – you must be able to provide evidence of this from the relevant Peat Partnership
Eligible land
| Eligible land type | Eligible land cover | Compatible land use code |
|---|---|---|
| Permanent grassland | Permanent grassland | PG01 |
Eligibility of protected land
| Land or features with protection | Eligibility |
|---|---|
| Sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) | Eligible – you must get SSSI consent before you do this action (read section 10.3 ‘SSSI consent’ in the SFI scheme information to find out how to do this) |
| Historic and archaeological features | Eligible – you must get a SFI HEFER before you do this action (read section 5.6 ‘Land with historic or archaeological features’ in the SFI scheme information to find out how to do this) |
Available area you can enter into this action
Total or part of the available area in a land parcel.
Rotational or static action
This action is static. This means you must do it at the same location each year of this action’s duration.
What to do
You must manage the grassland by grazing or cutting it in a way that can reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim.
You must not:
- graze or cut the grassland in a way that means this action’s aim cannot reasonably be achieved
- carry out mechanical activities in a way that may disturb breeding birds or damage nests, as birds, nests and eggs are protected by law
- apply digestate or any other industrial by-product, including paper waste
- apply any fertilisers and manures
- apply pesticides, except for herbicides to weed wipe or spot treat to control injurious weeds, invasive non-native species, or nettles
- carry out supplementary feeding, except for providing non-energy based mineral blocks
- allow areas of scrub to develop on land containing historic or archaeological features
- carry out drainage works or change existing drainage, without written permission before work starts
You can maintain an existing area of rough grazing to get paid for this action if it:
- meets this action’s requirements
- is not already being paid for under another environmental land management scheme option, such as Countryside Stewardship option UP2 (manage rough grazing for birds)
When to do it
You must do this action each year of its 3-year duration.
How to do it
It’s up to you how you do this action, as long as you:
- follow this action’s requirements – these are identified by a ‘must’
- do the action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim
You may find it helpful to read the ‘advice to help you do this action’, but it’s not part of this action’s requirements.
Evidence to keep
You must keep evidence to show what you’ve done to complete this action, such as:
- field operations at a land parcel level and associated invoices
- a grazing activity record if livestock are grazed on the area
- photographs and other documentation to show management undertaken
If it’s not clear that you’ve done this action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve its aim, we may ask for this evidence. You must supply the evidence if we ask for it.
Other actions or options you can do on the same area as this action
You can do the following actions or options on the same area in a land parcel as this action.
Some actions or options can only be done on the same area if they’re done at a different time of year to this action. For example, winter cover followed by a summer companion crop. Read ‘What to do’ and ‘When to do it’ to find out when this action must be done.
| Scheme | Action or option codes |
|---|---|
| SFI 2024 actions | OFC2, OFM2, CIPM1, CNUM1, CSAM1 |
| SFI 2023 actions | IPM1, NUM1, SAM1 |
| CS options | OR2, OT2, OT6 |
| ES options | No ES revenue options |
| SFI pilot standards | No area-based SFI pilot standards |
If an action or option cannot be located on the same area, you may be able to do it on a different area in the same land parcel. Read section 6 ‘Eligible land in other funding schemes’ in the SFI scheme information for more details.
You can do one of the following supplemental actions on land entered into this base action:
- GRH11: Cattle grazing supplement (non-moorland)
- SPM4: Keep native breeds on extensively managed habitats supplement (50-80%)
- SPM5: Keep native breeds on extensively managed habitats supplement (more than 80%)
You can do the following actions or options on the eligible boundaries of a land parcel entered into this action:
- SFI 2024 actions: CHRW1, CHRW2, CHRW3, BND1, BND2 and WBD2
- SFI 2023 actions: HRW1, HRW2, HRW3
- CS option BE3 (management of hedgerows)
- the introductory level of the SFI pilot hedgerows standard
Advice to help you do this action
The following advice may help you to do this action, but it’s not part of this action’s requirements.
Choosing the right location
Try to locate this action on sites that:
- are open, with any surrounding hedges less than about 2 metres high
- experience minimal disturbance (from footpaths or public rights of way)
- have no overhead pylons or power lines
- have no in-field trees
- are not next to woodland
- are not steep (for example above 14:1 or 8 degrees)
- have either an existing high water table or surface water attributes (flushes, ditches, foot drains) or where they could be created
Managing the sward
To help you achieve this action’s aim, you can graze the sward during the spring and summer to:
- provide a range of sward heights, including areas of very short grass (usually no more than 5 centimetres high) - upland waders will usually benefit most if the areas of very short grass cover around half the area in each field
- remove the year’s grass growth by autumn – this will help to achieve the appropriate sward conditions for upland waders to feed and nest in from the following spring
After the bird breeding season (usually from mid-July until early March), you can manage the sward by grazing or cutting (or a combination of both).
Managing areas of surface water and wet features
You can manage surface water and wet features (such as scrapes, flushes and foot drains) to provide muddy areas at the water’s edge for waders to feed.
Ideally, at least around half of the edges of surface water and wet features will have exposed mud at the water’s edge. This will help to promote invertebrate activity and allow chicks access to feed.
You may need to consider if it’s necessary tore-profile man-made wet features annually and maintain them as needed.
Managing scrub, bracken and dense rush
To minimise scrub, bracken and dense rush, you can carry out mechanical activities, as long as they are not done in a way that may disturb breeding birds or damage nests .
When you carry out mechanical activities, try to do this when the ground is dry.
You can manage dense rush, so that soft and hard rushes are minimal. This usually means they cover no more than around 20% of the area entered into this action.
Updates to this page
Last updated 15 August 2024 + show all updates
-
PRF2 deleted from SFI 2024 actions.
-
Where you can do this action - an eligible land type is defined in section 5.1 ‘Eligible land types for SFI’ in the SFI scheme information. Eligibility of protected land - updated link to section 10.3 ‘SSSI consent’ in the SFI scheme information. Other actions or options you can do on the same area - deleted MOR1 from SFI 2023 actions. Added supplemental actions GRH11, SPM4 and SPM5. Published voluntary advice to help you do this action, but it's not part of this action’s requirements.
-
First published.