Latest news
The NEIRF has opened its third round of funding, specifically designed to help farmers attract private investments for nature. It is welcoming applications from 11 December 2023, to 16 February 2024.
NEIRF allocates funding ranging from £10,000 to £100,000 for nature projects. The funding can be used to help farmers develop projects that generate revenue from ecosystem services, and establish scalable investment models for the future.
Defra is holding a webinar for interested parties on 10 January. Find out how to join through this Defra blog.
The third round was announced as part of a series of pledges made by the Defra Secretary, outlining £45 million worth of funding.
About the fund
The NEIRF helps deliver government ambitions set out in the Environmental Improvement Plan, and Agricultural Transition Plan.
Project proposals should focus on generating revenue from ecosystem services, such as carbon units, biodiversity units, and catchment services.
Grants are designed to assist farmers in obtaining professional support for project development, overcoming investment barriers, and presenting compelling cases to potential investors.
The aim of the funding is to establish scalable investment models to benefit the wider industry. Therefore, recipients are expected to openly share gained knowledge and products to benefit the natural capital investment sector and inform future government funding schemes.
Previous rounds
The NEIRF has previously supported the development of 86 projects across England in its two earlier funding rounds. The previous rounds did not have a farming focus. You can find out more about these projects below:
- In May 2022, 50 projects received up to £100,000 to boost investment in nature.
- In July 2021, innovative nature projects were awarded funding to drive private investment.
The GFI (Green Finance Institute) has drawn on what’s been learned from previous NEIRF projects to develop an interactive, online farming toolkit for assessing nature market opportunities. It may be helpful to review previous projects and the GFI toolkit when planning your application.
Current round
There is £5 million allocated to this round of NEIRF. It’s a competitive grant scheme which allocates funding ranging from £10,000 to £100,000 for nature projects.
Eligibility
In this application round the grant is open to farmers or farmer-led groups. Non-farming not-for-profit organisations, charities, NGOs, public bodies, or businesses can apply if they provide evidence of directly supporting farmers to access nature markets or have significant farmer representation in their partnership.
Ineligible applicants include those not directly assisting farmers, central government departments, executive agencies, and non-departmental public bodies.
However, these ineligible organisations can participate as partners in bids, with the requirement to specify staff involvement in the grant application. Proof of eligibility must be demonstrated during the application process.
How to apply
You can find the full scheme details and information how to apply here at: GOV.UK | Natural Environment Investment Readiness Fund grant.
The deadline for all required information is midday (12pm) on 16 February 2024.
