Wednesday 28 January 2015

Forestry Commission - Preliminary Grant Offer for woodland management options under Countryside Stewardship

From 2015 Countryside Stewardship will include support for forestry. 

Workshops will be held later in the year in partnership with Natural England to provide details of the full range of grants and how the new systems will work.

To maintain momentum in the forestry sector the Government has approved a “Preliminary Grant Offer” (PGO)  for:

  • Woodland creation (i.e. grants for planting new woodland) Note: Your initial application for woodland creation must be received by the FC no later than 30th April to allow time for site visits. Your final application must be submitted by 31st May
  • Woodland management plans (i.e. payment for preparation of a long term management plan)
  • Woodland tree health (e.g. grants for restocking woodland that has been subject to a pest or disease)

The Forestry Commission would like to invite you to either of the following seminars taking place in South East England.

Tuesday 10th February at Godstone Village Hall (also known as White Hart Barn) in east Surrey.

Tuesday 17th February at Theale Village Hall, nr Reading.

The seminars are free, but spaces are limited and subject to first come, first served. Please use the links to ‘eventbrite’ above to book your place

OUTLINE AGENDA:

Registration from 9.00

9.30   Welcome, introductions and context of the Preliminary Grant Offer

9.40   Scope of the Preliminary Grant Offer:

  • Timeline
  • Option Groups (including eligibility and thresholds)
  • Capital items and options

10.00 Guidance and forms

  • Information sources
  • Application process

10.20 Break

10.40 Scoring Woodland Creation

11.05 Questions

11.20 DECC (Department of Energy and Climate Change) Sustainability Criteria for woodfuel

11.35 Woodland Management Plans - Best practice

11.55 Support for Forestry Business Development – Leader, Local Enterprise Partnerships, etc

12.15 Questions

12.30 Close

Monday 26 January 2015

Countryside Stewardship - FREE woodland funding events

The Forestry Commission will deliver a series of free events concerning the woodland funding options under the new Countryside Stewardship scheme.

Full details are below.

For the south east events please use the following links:



More information on Countryside Stewardship can be found at the Farmers GuardianCLA and GOV.UK.




Friday 23 January 2015

Forestry Commission - FREE forestry contractors events

Join the Forestry Commission for a free "pie and drink" at one of the southeast forestry contractor workshops being held this February/March. 

  • Hear about new markets in your county - who is out there.
  • Learn about the new grant options and how they could help grow your business.
  • Share your ideas and concerns with like minded colleagues.
  • Tell us how we could help and meet your local Forestry Commission team.

We are seeing signs of market recovery - woodfuel, new boiler installations with the Renewable Heat Incentive, estates switching to woodfuel to heat houses, the BSW purchase of the Giddings sawmill, and a revival in markets for chestnut.  

 How can forestry businesses make the most from this recovery?  

Come and share your thoughts and hear from others.

Did you know that woods in the southeast:

  • account for about a quarter of all England 's woods  - 326,000 ha covering 15.6% of land area (England average is 9.9% )
  • contain more than 30 million m3 of "overdue" wood as current harvesting removes less than a third (300,000 m3) of the total volume that grows each year
  • grow at a rate of more than 1,000,000 m3 a year but less than a 3rd of this is being harvested
  • are at risk of collapse through lack of management
Tell us if you are coming and how many, as places are limited, by clicking on the relevant link below and following the instructions. 

We look forward to meeting you. 

Wednesday 18th February - West Sussex and East Hampshire

Thursday 19th February - Kent (Lenham)

Monday 23rd February - South Hampshire

Tuesday 24th February – Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire


Thursday 26th February - East Sussex

Friday 26th February - Isle of Wight

Wednesday 4th March - North Hampshire and West Berkshire

Tuesday 20 January 2015

2015 forestry and wood fuel events - dates for diary

A recent email newsletter from Fuelwood reminded us that a new year has arrived, and with that comes a long list of forestry and wood fuels events for the kitchen calendar.

We have replicated Fuelwood's list (thank you) and added a few others including the National Woodfuel Conference in October.

First up is LAMMA 2015 which takes place this weekend at the East of England Showground.  With free car parking for 10,000 we hope the snow holds off!

January 2015

LAMMA'15 - The UK’s largest farm machinery, equipment and services show. Wed 21st. to Thurs 22nd.

March 2015

AGRI-EXPO - Agri-Expo (SE) was formed in 2011 and now attracts over 150 stands including manufacturers, machinery dealers and other companies directly involved in agriculture. 4th.

SOUTH EAST WOOD WORKING SHOW - Now in its 4th year the show will be a mix of Demonstrations, Personalities, Trade Stands, Advice and Fun. 6-7th.

SALON BOIS ENERGIE SHOW 2015 - Nantes France - "from the forest to the flame". Thurs 19th. to Sun 22nd.

May 2015

FUELWOOD MAY OPEN DAYS - See kindling, firewood and related commercial machinery operating. Fri 29th. to Sat 30th.

June 2015

ARB SHOW 2015 - NEW VENUE - Westonbirt, The National Arboretum, Tetbury, Gloucestershire. Fri 5th. to Sat 6th.

July 2015

Kent County Show - The Kent County Show is a showcase event for farming, countryside and rural life. 10-12th July

GREAT YORKSHIRE SHOW 2015 – Harrogate - The biggest agricultural event in the region. Tues 14th.  to Thurs 16th.

THE ROYAL WELSH SHOW 2015 - Encompasses the wide spectrum of farming and rural activities. Mon 20th. to Thurs 23rd.

CLA GAME FAIR 2015 - Offering a prestigious platform for country sports and activities. Fri 31st. to Sun 2nd.

September 2015

BENTLEY WOODFAIR 2015 - A great range of exhibits, activities, demonstrations and seminars. Dates to be confirmed.

CONFOR WOODLAND SHOW 2015 - The best of sustainable forestry and low-carbon businesses. Thurs 10th. to Fri 11th.

FUELWOOD OPEN DAYS - See kindling, firewood and related commercial machinery operating. Fri 25th. to Sat 26th.

October 2015

National Woodfuel Conference - To be sponsored by LC Energy and Forestry Commission England, the National Wood Fuel Conference will be held in association with Grown in Britain and Country Land and Business Association (CLA) and will coincide with Grown in Britain week. Thurs 15th Oct.

Friday 9 January 2015

Working with wood chip at Hever Castle - FREE CLA event

You may have heard a bit about Hever Castle's wood fuel and biomass heating project already.  

If you want to learn more then Douch Biomass and South East Wood Fuels will host a talk and site visit at Hever on March 24th.

Full details can be found on the CLA website.  Details can also be found below.