Single Payment Scheme Checklist - Yvonne Davies & Lizzie Luckes

 

The Luscombe Maye checklist
With the deadline for the Single Payment Scheme 2011 Claim fast approaching, the requirement to have all of the most up to date details available to facilitate the process of filling in the application form, is as vital as always.

 

RLR maps
We should now be past the horrors associated with the 2009-2010 mapping changes and as such the Rural Land Register (RLR) maps for your holding should be correct, except for any changes that you might have made since the mapping update took place.

 

All changes to the boundaries of land parcels, should be submitted to the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) using an RLE1 form. This can be completed either before the application is sent to the RPA or at the time of submitting the SPS 2011 Claim.

 

Entitlement Statement 2010
The number and value of Single Payment Entitlements held, as detailed on the Entitlement Statement 2010, needs to be checked against previous years and also against the total values shown on this year's SP5 form.

SP11 form
An SP11 form should be filled out if any entitlements have been transferred into the business during the 2010-2011 transfer window. The SP11 form should also be completed to activate the entitlements held, in order of their expiry date, to ensure that none are 'lost' back to the National Reserve.

 

RLE1 form
An RLE1 form will need to be submitted if any new buildings or developments have taken place on the land - these will need to be shown as ineligible features and in turn, the ineligible area should  be deducted from the total land parcel area on the claim form.

 

Entry Level Stewardship, Organic Entry Level Stewardship and Higher Level Stewardship
As many farmers will have renewed their 5-year ELS/OELS agreements over the past twelve months, care must be taken to ensure that the correct land use codes are used in line with the chosen options, this will hopefully alleviate any cross-checking queries that might be raised by Natural England. In addition, the same will apply with ensuring that the correct land use codes are used if you have entered into ELS/OELS or HLS since your last Single Payment application.
 
Land use codes
Farmers must also take care to note whether any temporary pastures on their holding, may now be classified as permanent pastures due to the five-year rule relating to the number of years that the land parcel has been in grass, whether or not this parcel has been re-seeded within that time.

 

Correspondence from RPA
It is important that correspondence from the RPA, noting a change in either field size or field number, be actioned for the 2011 claim. This will usually have arrived without a set of maps to check against. In such circumstances, it would be wise to request the most up to date set of RLR maps for the holding, which can easily be emailed to the farmer.

 

Yvonne Davies BSc (Hons), MRICS, FCIArb
Lizzie Luckes MRICS, FAAV
Associate: Rural Surveyors
D: 01803 869918  M: 07885 894435
E: yvonne.davies@luscombemaye.com