Before you fill in the full application, read the:

You can only submit a full application if you have been invited to do so after completing the online checker. If you’ve been invited, you will have received an email letting you know.

Differences from Water Management Grant round 1

The forms and guidance for round 2 of the Water Management Grant are different to the forms and guidance used for round 1. Always use links to the current guidance on the relevant scheme page rather than any copies you may have previously saved.

Applications submitted on Water Management Grant round 1 application forms will not be accepted.

How to register on the Rural Payments service

Make sure that your business is registered with the Rural Payments service and has a Single Business Identifier (SBI). The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) can’t process your application without this.

If you are not yet registered in the Rural Payments service, please call our helpline on 03000 200 301 and select the options to speak to the Rural Payments team. For information on how we handle personal data, read the Rural Payments Agency personal information charter.

Check your records in the Rural Payments service

Your application details must match your records in the Rural Payments service. If they do not, follow the guidance to update your records.

These details must be up to date:

• email address
• business name
• business postcode
• full name
• permissions

To check these in the Rural Payments service, you will need to find your main  SBI and your Customer Reference Number (CRN). If you get other payments from us, like the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS), you will find your  SBI on any letters you have had from us.

To find out how to find your  CRN in the Rural Payments service, call the Rural Payments helpline on 03000 200 301.

Make your full application

You will need to fill in 2 forms to make your application:

• a Microsoft Word application form
• a Microsoft Excel appendix spreadsheet

Only fill in the application form and spreadsheet provided, as we cannot accept information in any other format.

Complete the whole form and give full and clear answers to make your application strong. Your project forecast should be realistic to achieve.

When to apply

You can apply at any time before 23:59 on 31 October 2024. If this deadline changes, we will publish the details on the Farming Transformation Fund page.

We can’t accept any application that misses the published deadline.

Do not send your application before you have all the information you need, as we can’t accept an incomplete application.

You must sign your Grant Funding Agreement (GFA) before you start your project.

Submit your application

Save your completed application form as a Microsoft Word document and your completed appendix spreadsheet as a Microsoft Excel document in the 97-2003 Workbook (.xls) format.

Attach the documents to an email and send it to FTF@rpa.gov.uk from the email address you give us in Section 1 of the application form.

If an agent or consultant sends the form for you, they must copy you into the email, using the email address you give us in Section 1.

The email addresses used to submit the application must match with those held in the Rural Payments service, with permission to make legal changes or full permissions for the applicant business. If they don’t, we can’t accept the application.

Sending supporting documents

You need to attach all supporting documents to the email you send with your application forms. You need to submit each supporting document as a separate attachment. Please do not send them in a single PDF document.

Please do not send them by post or save your documents in online storage systems with links to access them.

Emails should be a maximum of 20MB. You may need to send several smaller emails. If you do, number each email, for example ‘Project reference number: application 1 of 3’.

Your project reference number will be on the email we send to you inviting you to submit a full application.

If you have any problems completing the full application or appendix form, contact our helpline on 03000 200 301 and select the option for the Farming Transformation Fund.

Permissions in the Rural Payments service

You can give other people access to your business in the Rural Payments service. You must have ‘Full permissions’ and the other person must be registered to give them access to your business details on the Rural Payments service. This is linked to the CRN number.

If you are an agent applying on behalf of a customer, or you are not the customer registered on Rural Payments, you must have permission to make legal changes or have full permissions for the business in Rural Payments.

Read guidance on updating your details in the Rural Payments service.

If you do not have Microsoft Excel

You can use free Open Office software to complete the application appendix, as long as you save it in the Microsoft Excel (.xls) format.

To do this:

• select ‘Save as’ when saving the appendix spreadsheet – the ‘Save as’ box will open
• select the format for the document in the ‘Save as type’ box and select the format type Microsoft Excel 97/2000/XP/2003 (.xls)
• click ‘Save’
• a dialog box may open asking you to ‘Confirm file format’ – if that happens, select ‘Confirm’

How to fill in your full application form

Fill in every section on the form unless the instructions say you can either type ‘N/A’ or move to the next question.

Section 1: Applicant details

Provide details of the business applying for the grant. This should be the same business invited to submit a full application.

If you’re filling in this form on behalf of a business or organisation where you are not the owner, you should be a director or partner.

Question 1.1

Enter the project reference number from the top of your ‘invitation to submit a full application’ email.

Question 1.2

Tell us the full name of your business or organisation. This is the name used on your annual financial accounts and your business bank account. It should also be the name of the business or organisation that is registered with us on the Rural Payments service.

Question 1.3

Enter your SBI number. You must make sure that the SBI number and business details registered with us on the Rural Payments service match with the SBI number, applicant business name, applicant name, applicant email address, address and postcode entered on the application form. If they do not, we will not be able to process your application.

Question 1.4

Enter the full address of the applicant business. If there is more than one address, it should be the address that all postal correspondence should be sent to.

Question 1.5

Enter your title, first name and surname. The applicant is normally the owner, a director or partner of the applicant business. The applicant’s name on the application form must match with the name registered on the Rural Payments service for the applicant business. The applicant must be someone with permission to make legal changes or full permissions for the business on the Rural Payments service.

Question 1.5a

Select your answer from the drop-down list.

Question 1.6

Enter the email address we should use to contact you if we have any queries about your application. Please provide an email address that you check regularly as we will use email as our main way of contacting you. This should be your own email address and not the one for your agent or manager, which you can give at Section 2.

Question 1.7

Enter your mobile phone number in case we need to speak to you.

Question 1.8

Enter your business phone number. It’s helpful for us to have 2 different contact numbers should we need them.

Question 1.9

We gathered some information from you when you used the online checker. Please review the answers you gave about the legal status of the business, business activity and business name. These will be in the email you received after submitting your details.

If you select ‘no’ from the drop-down list to this question, you’re confirming that the answers you gave in the online checker to all these questions have not changed.

If you select ‘yes’, you are confirming that one or more of the answers you gave in the online checker to these questions have changed or are incorrect.

Question 1.9a

If your answer at 1.9 is ‘yes’, please tell us of the changes to the application business details since you completed the online checker. The comments boxes throughout the form will expand as you write your answer.

If there have been a lot or big changes to any of the applicant business details which have not already been discussed and agreed with the Grants Service team, your project may no longer be eligible.

Question 1.10

Enter the most recent business turnover, balance sheet total (the total of all assets) and the financial year end date. If the business is less than one financial year old and has not filed any financial accounts yet, you can leave this blank.

We need the last 3 consecutive and most recent years of full audited or unaudited accounts.

You need to make sure that you send a full set of accounts, including profit and loss, balance sheet, the cover title and introduction pages. Include the pages which disclose all the notes to the accounts if there are any. We cannot accept ‘abbreviated accounts’.

Email your business accounts as PDF documents if you can.

Use the comments box on the application form to tell us if your business accounts do not meet these requirements. For example, some small businesses may not produce full sets of accounts, but we’d still expect to see a profit and loss and balance sheet summary.

We cannot accept ‘abridged accounts’ from small or micro companies and Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs) as they do not contain the information on turnover that we need to assess eligibility and financial viability. If you produce ‘abridged accounts’, you need to provide a statement with them which shows turnover, cost of sales and direct costs, and gross profit for the 3 most recent accounting periods. This statement must be endorsed by an independent and suitably qualified accountant.

If you’re a new business (you have not yet started trading or have been trading for less than 2 years) or are self-employed, explain how you will have the financial capacity to successfully deliver the project. This will need to be evidenced by one or more of the following supporting documents:

• latest tax returns
• an opening statement from a professionally qualified independent accountant that includes planned financing (loans or equity invested into the business), expected income and operating expenses
• draft financial statements or management accounts showing financial performance during the early period of trading

Question 1.11

We need to know if your business is linked to other businesses, to understand the structure and size of the business applying.

Businesses are considered as linked when:

• one business holds a majority of the shareholders’ or members’ voting rights in another business
• one business is entitled to appoint or remove a majority of the administrative, management or supervisory body of another
• a contract between the business, or a provision in the memorandum or articles of association of one of the businesses, enables one to exercise a dominant influence over the other
• one business is able, by agreement, to exercise sole control over a majority of shareholders’ or members’ voting rights in another

Businesses can also be linked through ownership by individuals, such as partners or through shareholding. Where this type of ownership is through one or more individuals who could work together, the enterprises involved are considered as linked if they operate on the same or adjacent markets. Family links are enough to show that individuals are working together.

If you are unsure if there is a link between the applicant business and any others, you should call our helpline on 03000 200 301 and select the option for the Farming Transformation Fund.

Question 1.11a

If your answer at 1.11 is ‘yes’, please tell us the name of any linked businesses.

You must send us the latest financial accounts for all linked businesses. If you are part of a group structure (a parent or subsidiary company) you must also provide consolidated group accounts.

Question 1.12

Using the drop-down box, tell us if your business or organisation has any related or linked businesses in Northern Ireland. You can only use this grant funding for business operations in England. You must not cross-subsidise any related, linked, parent, subsidiary, partnership, joint venture businesses or operations based in Northern Ireland.

Question 1.12a

If your answer at 1.12 is ‘yes’, please provide the details of the businesses or operations.

Question 1.13

Complete the drop-down box to tell us if your business is part of a fruit and vegetable producer organisation (PO). Read more information about POs.

Question 1.13a

If your answer at 1.13 is ‘yes’, please enter the name of the PO of which you are a member.

If your business is receiving funds from the Fruit and Vegetables Aid Scheme for this project, we will not be able to offer you a Farming Transformation Fund Water Management grant.

Question 1.14

Complete the drop-down boxes to provide information on the business principals, selecting either ‘yes’ or ‘no’ (business principals means any business owner, partner or director). If you answer ‘no’ to all 4 questions, go to Section 2.

Question 1.14a

If your answer at 1.14 is ‘yes’, provide more details in the box provided. This will not automatically mean that you won’t get a grant.

Section 2: Agent details

Question 2.1

Use the drop-down box to tell us if you have used an agent, consultant or business manager to help complete your application. If ‘no’, go to Section 3.

Questions 2.2 to 2.7

Provide their contact details.

Your agent must have permission to make legal changes or full permissions for the applicant business as detailed on the Rural Payments service.

Section 3: Business details

Question 3.1

Select one of the options that best represents the legal status of the business or organisation.

Question 3.2

Select the best fit for your main business activity from the drop-down list. Eligible applicants for these grants must be arable or horticulture businesses that supply the food industry, nurseries growing ornamentals or forestry nurseries.

Only arable and horticultural businesses growing, or intending to grow, irrigated food crops, ornamentals or forestry nurseries in England can apply for the water management grants.

Question 3.3

Select an answer from the drop-down list. Select ‘yes’ if the applicant business has been trading for less than 2 years, or if it is not trading yet.

Question 3.4

Enter the Companies House, VAT registration and Registered Charity numbers if the applicant business has them. If it does not, write ‘N/A’ in the boxes.

Section 4: Project overview

Question 4.1

Enter the name of your project. This should be the same as the project name you gave on the online application, and as recorded in the confirmation email you received. Your full application should be the same project as the one you outlined in your online application.

This project name will be included in correspondence and in any publicity.

Question 4.2

We need to know your project timescales. Select your proposed start date and completion date of the project from the drop-down boxes. The start date is when you intend to begin work on your project and incur eligible costs. Remember to allow at least 3 months after you submit your full application, to allow time for the appraisal and decision-making process.

The project completion date is when you’ll have finished your project, incurred all costs and submitted your final grant claim.

We understand it may be difficult to forecast your completion date at this stage in the process. Use information from your suppliers or contractors to help you work out how long it will take for you to complete the project works, construction and installation. Once you know when the project is likely to be finished build in some additional time to pay all the invoices and prepare and submit your grant claim.

You should be realistic in how long the project will take. Applicants often underestimate this. You need to be cautious with your timescales, rather than over-optimistic.

Question 4.3

This grant is for businesses where the project activity is located in England. We need to know the location of the project so we can check the project is eligible.

If the project is at a different place to the address you gave at question 1.4, please give the full address details here, including the postcode. If you do not know the exact postcode for the land where your project is located, please provide the postcode for the nearest address and explain this in the application form. We understand that some projects may have multiple locations and addresses. Provide the details of all the locations of the project activity. You may find it helpful to identify the project location(s) on a map and submit this with your application.

Question 4.4

We want to understand how your business started, how it has grown, and how or why you identified the proposed project. Tell us the history of the business and how this project fits with your future.

If your business is not yet trading, or has been trading for less than 2 years, explain the reason you started the business, the business structure, and what stage it is at in terms of trading history, size and potential growth.

Try to use no more than 200 words in your answer.

Question 4.5

Tell us more to help us understand the nature of the project. Describe what the project is, what it will do and what it will achieve. Tell us what you are currently doing and what you are going to do, buy, build, install or create with the grant funding.

For example, ‘I currently grow and irrigate 40 ha potatoes and 10 ha carrots. I currently use a rain gun irrigation system, abstracting from a bore hole. I intend to build a new 150,000m³ clay lined reservoir, with 8km of underground water distribution main and will purchase two irrigation booms which will improve accuracy of irrigation. This project will enable me to irrigate a total of 90 hectares of land annually and my business will grow and irrigate 40 ha of onions, as well as potatoes and carrots. The reservoir will be filled by winter peak flow surface abstraction and the borehole will no longer be used for crop irrigation. As well as my business, this project will benefit 1 other farming business which will have access to some of the water from the reservoir’.

The project you are applying for must be the same as the one you described in the online checker. If there have been minor changes to the project, you can tell us about these at question 5.11.

We are looking for coherent projects that improve farm productivity through more efficient use of water for irrigation and secure water supplies for crop irrigation.

Try to use no more than 200 words in your answer.

Section 5: Project costs, funding and quotes

You should fill in tab B ‘Costs & suppliers’ and tab C ‘Funding & claims’ in the appendix spreadsheet before answering these questions.

Use the figures from the Project Cost Summary table in tab C to fill in this section.

You must make sure the figures are the same on the full application (Word) form and the appendix (Excel) spreadsheet.

Question 5.1

Enter the total project cost in £ to 2 decimal places, for example, £200,000.00. This is the total eligible expenditure (costs) that you are applying for grant funding for and should not include any other costs that you have identified as ‘non-grant funded expenditure’ at question 5.5.

This should be the total net cost unless your business is unable to reclaim full VAT and you wish to include VAT in your grant request. For further guidance on VAT, see question 5.7.

Question 5.2

Tell us how much grant you are applying for in £ to 2 decimal places, for example, £65,000.00.

The minimum grant you can apply for is £35,000 (40% of £87,500), and the maximum grant is £500,000 per applicant business per round of funding.

Question 5.3

Enter the total amount of private match funding required for the project in £ (grant funded expenditure only).

The maximum grant, or public money, you can apply for is 40% of the eligible costs of your project. You need to fund the remaining project costs with private money, such as business savings, a bank loan or overdraft.

You cannot use public money (such as other grant funding from government or local authorities) as your match funding.

Question 5.4

Tell us the source of your private match funding. This might be from own business funds, a bank loan, an overdraft, a personal loan from family or friends, a director’s loan, own savings or a combination. You can also use a loan from your landlord, including Local Authority landlords.

Use the drop down ‘yes’ or ‘no’ boxes to indicate the sources of all project funding you’ve secured or have conditional agreement for (for example, subject to the grant being awarded for the project). If you select ‘other’ please tell us about the funding source in the box below.

You need to provide evidence of the match funding with your application. This could be an email, letter or copy of a commercial loan agreement, which needs to show:

• where the funding is coming from (a named person or organisation)
• how much the funding is for (the amount is enough to fund the project)
• who the funding is being offered to
• the date of the offer

If you are funding the project from other sources, such as own savings, personal loans from family or friends, director’s loans or cash reserves within the business, you also need to be able to show how much and where it is coming from. For example, this could be a bank or building society statement that shows the funds are available to the business. If the funding for the project is part of a larger mortgage or loan, please explain how you will be able to make use of this facility and show that there are enough funds available for the project.

If you buy an item for the project using lease or hire purchase, you must own the item outright before you can claim any money towards it. This means that before you claim any grant you need to have paid all the instalments and can show that you fully own it.

Question 5.5

Enter the cost of any non-grant funded expenditure in £. These are costs that you are not applying for grant funding for but are still required as part of your project, such as ineligible solar panels to provide energy towards the project equipment.

Question 5.5a

Tell us how you’ll cover any non-grant funded expenditure. These costs will need to be met by the business.

Question 5.6

Grant funding is paid in arrears at agreed stages. You can make a maximum of 3 claims over the course of the project.

Explain how you will make sure there is enough funding in place to pay the project costs in full before each grant claim is submitted, allowing time for claims to be processed and paid. For example, there may be headroom within your overdraft or normal business cash flow.

Question 5.7

Where VAT can be recovered from HMRC, it should not be included in your project costs. Please explain here if you have included VAT in your project costs and why it is not recoverable. This would normally be if your business is not VAT registered.

If you are including VAT in your project costs and grant request, you will need to provide a letter from a professionally qualified independent accountant to confirm that you are not VAT registered.

A professionally qualified accountant is defined as a member of:

• Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) or the Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies (CCAB) constituent bodies
• Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW)
• Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
• Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA)
• Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS)
• Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI)

Use the table below to help you decide whether you can include VAT in your project costs or not.

VAT status	Outcome
You are registered for VAT and making regular returns of VAT to HMRC	You will not be able to include VAT in your project costs or grant request because it is recoverable in full on VAT returns
You are not registered for VAT because your business is below the threshold for supplies	You will be able to include VAT in your project costs and grant request provided this status can be verified by RPA with your full application
You are not registered for VAT because you opted to join the agricultural flat rate scheme instead	You will not be able to include VAT in your project costs or grant request because the flat rate scheme you have chosen to join is a simplification instead of registering for VAT. The terms of the scheme mean that you receive compensation for not being able to recover VAT paid by your business by retaining a flat rate addition (FRA) added to sales invoices in respect of supplies made to VAT registered customers
You are registered for VAT but you have also opted to join a flat rate scheme	You will not be able to include VAT in your project costs or grant request because the flat rate scheme you have chosen to join is a simplification which compensates you for not being able to reclaim input VAT. In addition, you can reclaim input VAT on certain capital assets costing more than £2,000 through your VAT returns
You are registered for VAT and making exempt supplies meaning that not all VAT paid can be recovered on returns of VAT to HMRC	You will not be able to include VAT in your project costs or grant request because at the time of application you will only be able to estimate the non-recoverable VAT. The final position will only be known after the grant has been paid and your project is complete

Question 5.8

You need to provide the required number of quotes, tenders or references to catalogue listings for all items included in your application to show how you will get best value for it.

A quote is a fixed price for the item and the price charged by the supplier cannot increase. If suppliers are not prepared to provide quotes, you can get estimates from them instead. Note that the cost of the item can change if you are given an estimate. The guidance for estimates is the same as for quotes.

You need to provide details of all the evidence of costs on tab B ‘Costs & suppliers’ in the application appendix spreadsheet.

The table below explains how many quotes, catalogue references and formal tenders are required, depending on the value of an item.

Value of items or service	How to show value for money
Less than £5,000	1 quote, or reference to 1 catalogue listing (including online suppliers)
£5,000-£50,000	3 quotes, or references to 3 catalogue listings (including online suppliers)
More than £50,000	3 quotes, or 3 formal competitive tenders* where required *These are viewed as quotes that suppliers put together within an identified timeframe and that follow a detailed and itemised specification provided by the applicant

You should be able to provide the necessary 3 quotes from different suppliers (these are not the same as different manufacturers). You can source these internationally as well as from inside the UK.

If you have not provided the required number of quotes, references to catalogue listings or tenders for any item included in your project costs, explain why. If there are no other suppliers available, either nationally or globally, you should provide written evidence (such as emails or letters) of ‘declines’ from at least 3 potential suppliers that you have approached.

You also need to explain how you have assessed that the cost of the item is value for money and provide evidence of this with your application.

All quotes or tenders must:

• come from different, independent suppliers who are not linked to each other or to your business through shared ownership, or control
• be sourced independently by you or your agent – a supplier cannot source quotes from other suppliers on your behalf
• include a detailed and itemised breakdown of costs
• include the supplier’s business name, address (including postcode) and telephone number
• be comparable with each other in terms of quality, size, quantity, units and specification for every item
• be dated and obtained within the last 9 months
• be addressed to the applicant business or agent (containing the business name, business or project address, if different, and postcode) – if the quote is addressed to your agent, it must clearly reference the project and its location

If a quote is emailed to you from a supplier as an attachment, you should also send the original covering email showing time, date and who sent it.

Any references to a catalogue listing must be sent as screen shots and they must include the:

• date on which it was printed or copied
• item description and the price
• name of the company or catalogue
• page number or webpage

All quotes, catalogue listings and tenders must be genuine and sourced from genuine suppliers who are actively trading. Checks will be carried out to make sure that quotes, catalogue listings and tenders submitted to support an application have not been made up or changed in any way.

We will also check that there has been no collusion between suppliers, or between applicants and their agent or suppliers, in relation to supplying supporting quotes or tenders. Any attempt made to provide false or misleading information to us could lead to prosecution.

If the supplier is VAT registered and will be charging VAT, you need to provide the supplier’s VAT number, if it is not on the quote. If the supplier is a limited company, you must provide the company registration number, if it’s not on the quote. You should enter these on tab B ‘Costs & suppliers’ in the application appendix spreadsheet.

We check value for money by comparing all quotes in £ sterling. If you’re providing quotes in currency other than in £ sterling, you will need to convert these to £ sterling in your application. You can use HMRC exchange rates for the conversion. If you are converting from other currency to £ sterling, please be aware that any fees including non-sterling transaction fees are not eligible for grant funding. You will need to exclude these from the value being converted.

If you are proposing to use a formal tendering process, you must contact us to discuss this. We will make sure this is appropriate for your project and timescales. You need to send copies of the email(s) showing you contacted us about using a formal tendering process and it was agreed that you could.

If the quotes or tenders do not meet the requirements, you will need to submit revised quotes or tenders that do. We may remove the item from consideration if it is not supported by valid quotes or tenders.

Best value quote

We want applicants to use the best value quote. This means getting the best value on the market by using the cheapest supplier for each project item. We will base any grant on the value of the cheapest quote only. You can still use a more expensive supplier, but you will need to fund the difference in cost.

Questions 5.9 and 5.9a

Select ‘yes’ or ‘no’ as your answer from the drop-down option to confirm if you or your business is connected in any way or has an association with any of the businesses providing quotes for the project items.

If you answer ‘yes’ you need to identify the suppliers and explain the connection. This includes links through ownership as set out at question 1.11 or any other association, for example if the supplier business is owned by a family member or by an employee of the applicant business.

It is important that you declare this to us. If you do not tell us about an association with a supplier, we may refuse funding.

Questions 5.10 and 5.10a

Select ‘yes’ or ‘no’ as your answer from the drop-down option to tell us if you plan to purchase any second-hand items for the project. If you answer ‘yes’ provide details of the project items that you plan to purchase and why you wish to do this.

When you request quotes for a second-hand item, you’ll need to ask the supplier to confirm the following points (provide a copy of the email or letter with your application):

• the origin of the item and, if possible, confirmation that during the previous 7 years the item has not been purchased with public funding – if you cannot get this confirmation from the supplier, you should make your own enquiries and provide us with a declaration to confirm that, to the best of your knowledge, the item has not previously been grant-funded
• that the item meets health and safety legislation
• that the item does not cost more than the market value for new equipment
• that the item is operational and fit for the purpose of the project as described by you to them when you get the quote

You’ll need to confirm that the item specification is equal to or better than a new comparable version, that it meets the requirements of the project, and that it is expected to last for the duration of any grant agreement that might be offered to you.

You’ll also need to confirm that the description given to the supplier was consistent with the purpose for the project as set out in your application (supply the email you send to all potential suppliers asking them to provide a quote that sets out what you want to use the item for).

If you cannot obtain the supplier confirmation with the quote, you need to explain why. You should provide other evidence that the item will meet the criteria as set out above. If you do not provide confirmation from the supplier that meets these requirements, we may not be able to accept the quote.

If your second-hand item is no longer available at the time we approve your application, you can request to use a different supplier. You will need to provide the confirmation from that supplier as set out above with the new quote.

You do not need to get all 3 quotes for second-hand items. You can submit one quote for the second-hand item and 2 further quotes for new items if the item details are similar and the cost of the second-hand item is cheaper than the cost of a new item. Where the item cost is below £5,000 you will need to provide a further quote for a new item which is to the same specification.

Questions 5.11 and 5.11a

Review the answers you submitted to the online checker. We sent you a confirmation email including your answers.

Select ‘yes’ or ‘no’ from the drop-down options to answer if the project details or its location have changed since you completed the online checker.

If you select ‘No’ from the drop-down list to this question, you are confirming that the answers you gave to the online checker are correct and unchanged.

If you select ‘yes’ from the drop-down list to this question, you’re confirming that one or more of the answers you gave to the online checker was incorrect or has changed. Use the space provided in the application form to inform us of any changes to the answers you gave.

We know that some project details may have changed since you completed the online checker, such as changes to project costs. The overall details of the project described in this application should not be much different from those described in the online checker. You should discuss any changes with our Grants Service team before submitting your full application to make sure you can proceed.

If there have been significant changes to the project, and these have not already been discussed and agreed with us, this could affect your application and eligibility for grant funding.

Section 6: Other funding

Question 6.1

Tell us if you or your business have received, or applied for, any other public sector funding for previous water management activities or for other items for this project. Select your answer from the drop-down box. If ‘yes’, please give details in the table.

This includes funding from public sector organisations like your local authority, Big Lottery Fund, levy board funds or other government grants including from Defra, Natural England, Forestry Commission and RPA.

It also includes EU funding, such as from the following schemes:

• European Social Fund (ESF)
• European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)
• European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD)
• European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF)
• Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE)
• Catchment Sensitive Farming (CSF)
• Forestry Commission
• LEADER

You should include details of any other grant applications you have made and not yet heard the outcome.

You do not need to include Single Payment Scheme (SPS) or Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) payments.

Section 7: Permissions and consents

Question 7.1

Confirm here whether the project will take place on land or in premises that are rented, leased, or tenanted (or whether the applicant business owns the land or premises). Select your answer from the drop-down options.

If the applicant business does not own the land or premises, you will need a rental or tenancy agreement with the owner. You’ll need to provide details of your rental, lease or tenancy agreement including end dates of the current agreement, where applicable.

Many limited company farming businesses do not own the land farmed – this is held outside the farming business for example, by a trust or owned by individuals. Where the limited company farming business is the applicant, a rental or tenancy agreement will be required.

You do not need to send us a copy of the whole agreement, but we may ask for it in the future. We will need to see a copy of the sections showing the property address, tenant, landlord, signatures and dates, and the tenancy term for fixed term arrangements.

If we approve your application and you have a fixed term arrangement that has less than 6 years to run, you’ll need to provide a new agreement.

If you have an oral tenancy agreement, you need written evidence from your landlord confirming that you have security of tenure for at least 6 years. If you cannot do this, then you can supply evidence of rent payments, estate correspondence or other documentation such as subsidy claims that shows you have occupied the land or premises before 1 September 1995.

Question 7.2

Tell us here if planning permission is needed for your project. Select your answer from the drop-down options to confirm that you have planning permission for the project, or it is not required.

You may need planning permission for construction or enlargement of a reservoir or construction of a pump house. If these are included in your project, you need to make sure you have addressed the need for planning permission.

You need to send a copy of the planning permission with your full application submission. We cannot assess applications or commit funds to projects that are waiting for planning permission to begin.

We also need a copy of the plans and drawings that were approved as part of your planning permission. We’ll use these to confirm that these details match those in your application and to check that any specific requirements are met.

If you do not have planning consent for your project your application will be considered incomplete and withdrawn from the scheme.

Question 7.2a

Please tell us the name of the local planning authority (LPA), the planning reference approval number and the name of the planning website. We may need these to check the planning documents and plans on the LPA website.

Question 7.3

The construction of a reservoir or enlargement to a reservoir or construction of a pump house may require planning permission.

Construction of smaller reservoirs may be possible through prior notification. Projects to construct larger reservoirs will need to apply for full planning permission to the LPA.

We advise you to consult with your LPA before preparing your full application.

Tell us why planning permission is not needed for your project and provide written confirmation (a letter or email) of this from your LPA.

Question 7.4

You must have an abstraction licence in place that allows you to abstract as proposed. You’ll need to send us a copy with your application so we can make sure it:

• is current and for your business
• is in place for a sufficient period
• matches the details in the application
• details the period and purpose of abstraction
• details the maximum quantity of water to be abstracted
• does not have any conditions that disagree with the details in the application

Tell us here if an abstraction licence is needed for your project. Select your answer from the drop-down options to confirm that you have the abstraction licences for the project, or abstraction licences are not required.

We cannot assess applications or commit funds to projects that are waiting for abstraction licences to proceed. Therefore, you need to send a copy of the abstraction licences together with your full application submission.

Provide details of the abstraction licences that you have in the Application Appendix Water Management details tab.

If you do not have the abstraction licences for your project, your application will be considered incomplete and withdrawn from the scheme.

Question 7.5

Use the table in the full application form to list any other permissions or consents you have or that are needed for your project. These could include a wayleave to lay a pipe or cable across someone else’s property, consent to lay a pipe or cable under a public highway or agreement to lay a pipe across or near a watercourse.

Section 8: Selection criteria

The information that you give in this section provides more detail about some of the entries in the application appendix spreadsheet. We will use these to help us assess how well your project meets the criteria for the Water Management Grant round 2. It is important that you answer each question as fully and clearly as possible, as a lack of content may weaken your application.

The information you provide should help us build a picture of the whole business and not just the activity happening specifically at the project location.

8.1 Water Management Grant round 2 theme details

The information you give in this section provides more detail about some of the entries in the Water Management details tab of the application appendix spreadsheet.

We use this section to understand the project, and its potential impact, in more detail. These answers help explain what the project is doing, what it’s bringing to your business, and if there are any potential benefits.

Question 8.1.1

Tell us here if your crop type is ‘other’. Select your answer from the drop-down options. If ‘yes’, provide details of the ‘other’ crops that you will grow and irrigate.

Question 8.1.2

Tell us here if the project will benefit other businesses including supplying water to other farmers. Select your answer from the drop-down options. If ‘yes’, tell us details about the collaboration/partnership and provide evidence of support for the project.

If you will be supplying water to neighbouring farmers, tell us about that here, including who you will be supplying water to, how much and the arrangement in place for water sharing.

If you will be working collaboratively with another business(es) to collect and store water and irrigate land for the purpose of growing crops, tell us about that here. For example, working with a neighbouring farm to extend an irrigation water distribution system. Include details of who you will be collaborating with and the arrangement that is in place.

With your application you need to provide letter(s) of support from the third parties that you will be working with.

Please note that selling water for use other than irrigating crops is not eligible – for example if you intend to sell the water for domestic use or to local shops and businesses.

You cannot apply for a Water Management Grant if you intend to supply all of the water stored to other farmers. To apply for a Water Management Grant you must be growing, or intending to grow, irrigated crops. This question is about whether any surplus water that is not required by your business for irrigation will be shared with other farmers.

Question 8.1.3

Tell us about any new jobs that will created as a result of the project. Explain each role, their key responsibilities, the hours of work per week and when you expect the job to be filled. Explain how you have decided that the type and number of jobs are relevant and appropriate for the project. This question is not scored but we will monitor and record job creation as a project output.

Use the full time equivalent (FTE) value based on separate roles of 30 hours or more per week. For example, a person working 15 hours a week would be 0.5 FTE, 30 hours or more would be 1 FTE, or a person working 30 hours or more a week but only for 3 months would be 0.25 FTE.

Question 8.1.4

If you want to explain or clarify any of the responses you have entered into the Water Management details tab in the Application Appendix, please use this section. For example, you may wish to explain how the volumes of water entered in the Water Management details tab match with the volumes in the abstraction licences. You aren’t required to explain the details and can enter ‘N/A’ if you don’t want to do this.

Question 8.2 Rationale for the grant request

There are 3 parts to this question, and you need to answer each one.

Question 8.2.1

Tell us why the project needs grant funding for it to go ahead. You must justify, in detail, the support of public funding. Explain how the project will deliver additional activity over and above what would otherwise be delivered. We cannot support projects that we consider will take place anyway without grant funding and you must show that the grant contribution to a project will enable it to go ahead.

Question 8.2.2

Explain which other options you have considered before deciding upon the proposed project, why the alternatives were discounted and why the proposed option is required to deliver the project in your application.

For example, you may have considered:

• alternative project designs
• other funding packages
• a different location
• longer or shorter timescales
• scaling back other planned projects
• a smaller reservoir or a different route for the irrigation pipes
• other sources of commercial funding

Please explain who you have contacted and why this funding was not secured.

Question 8.2.3

Tell us what will happen to the project and the delivery of the direct project outputs if grant funding was not offered. Explain how this would impact on project timescales, specification, and the forecasted achievement of outputs. For example, if the project would go ahead but on a slower timescale, and if any of the outputs would be delivered or would they be delivered over a longer timescale. Identify which specific project outputs would be impacted.

The grant cannot support projects that do not provide a reasonable and justified rationale for funding.

Question 8.3 Financial health and projections

We need to understand how the proposed project will impact financially on your business operations, and how your business will manage this.

Before completing this question, you will need to fill in the ‘Financial impact’ tab of the appendix spreadsheet to show the impact of the project on your future costs and income. Enter your annual forecast costs and income against each heading provided in the table. You should complete the table with your forecast costs and income for a typical year after the project has been completed and is operational.

Your project will be operational when the reservoir has been constructed, the infrastructure and equipment is in use, new or additional crops are being grown, and any additional land will be irrigated. You may need to think ahead to one or two years after the project works have been completed and when you are growing and irrigating the crops listed in the application.

Question 8.3.1

Explain here the forecasts and key assumptions you have used to fill in the ‘Financial impact’ tab of the Application Appendix. For example:

• if you have increased customer demand for new or additional crops and what your sales forecasts are
• if the project will generate additional income
• if there will be additional costs or a reduction in costs because of the project

Explain the information you have based your forecasts on, when you will grow the new or additional crops and when you will irrigate the additional area of land.

You need to make sure your forecasts are realistic and achievable for the business.

Question 8.3.2

We need to understand the financial capacity within your business to manage the delivery of the project, and how the project will impact your business finances once operational.

Please explain:

• what the financial benefits are of the project to your business once it is operational
• how you will manage your cash flow while carrying out your project and how you will manage the grant being paid in arrears
• how you will manage your cash flow to fund the existing business and the new project activity
• any relevant financial issues relating to the applicant business and the underlying business accounts you have submitted with the full application that we need to know about.

If you’re a new business (have not yet started trading or have been trading for less than 2 years) or are self-employed, explain how you have the financial capacity to successfully deliver the project.

We may not be able to support projects that we consider present a significant financial risk to the business.

Question 8.4 Project delivery

Projects need to be delivered within design, budget, and schedule to be successful. Tell us how you will manage your project to achieve these targets and how you will deal with any issues that may occur during delivery of your project.

Question 8.4.1 Risks and mitigation

Risks are defined as events that are or could be likely. The table in the application lists examples of risks that could impact the successful delivery of your project. These are:

• delays or difficulties with supply of project equipment or materials
• contractor delays, or failure, to complete works or installation
• delays to the project due to adverse weather conditions
• rising or unforeseen additional costs
• delays in receiving planned project funding
• lack of expertise in the business to successfully manage and deliver the project
• unexpected changes to the team managing the project and grant
• excavation work reveals archaeological finds
• excavation work reveals unsuitable soil structure.

You need to complete all columns in the table, using drop down choices or some free text, as follows.

In column:

• A – select the chance of each risk occurring
• B – select the likely impact if a risk does occur
• C – explain what you would do if the risk did occur and the steps you would take to continue the project

Explain what you will do to reduce the chance of the risk occurring.

Add any additional risks you identify in the empty boxes at the end of the list.

Question 8.4.2

Tell us how and who will manage your project delivery, including:

• the people in the project team responsible for delivering the project to schedule and cost, raising the grant claims, and managing the post-project business activity
• their current roles in your business
• their project delivery skills and experience, or whether you are bringing in outside expertise.

We may not be able to support projects that we consider have significant delivery risks and a lack of planned mitigation actions.

Section 9: Information and evaluation

Question 9.1: Follow-up contact

Please let us know if you are willing to be contacted in the future. This will help us improve the services and schemes we provide. Select your answer from the drop-down options.

Declaration

Please read this section and make sure that you’re in agreement with and can meet the requirements set out in it.

The declaration must be completed and submitted by someone holding ‘full permissions’ or ‘make legal changes’ permission on the Rural Payments service.

By submitting and agreeing to the submission of the full application form, you’ll be agreeing to the declaration. Remember to complete the agent authorisation section if you want them to act on your behalf and contact us regarding your application. You will also need to provide them with a minimum of make legal changes permission on the Rural Payments service.

When completing your declaration, you should be aware that RPA may withhold or recover all payments under a grant funding agreement if the agreement holder is responsible for a serious breach of their agreement or the 2021 Regulations. This can include if the agreement holder:

• gives false or misleading information
• fails to report a change of circumstances
• fails to provide requested information
• obstructs or prevents a site visit

In serious cases, RPA may prohibit the agreement holder from receiving financial assistance under this scheme and other Defra schemes for up to two years. Agreement holders will be notified of any decision and have the right to query it using RPA’s Complaints procedure on GOV.UK.

The person making the declaration and submitting the form must provide their  CRN and the email address to so we can identify them on the Rural Payments service.

Supporting documents checklist

You must email all your supporting documents with your electronic full application forms. Please email your supporting documents in PDF files. You need to submit each supporting document as a separate attachment. Please do not send them in a single PDF document.

All supporting documents that you need to submit to support your application are listed at the end of the full application form. See ‘Supporting documents checklist’ for a list of these. You need to review this list and tick the box to confirm you have included the document with your application. There is a comments box for you to explain if necessary.

If we do not receive all the supporting documents needed for your project, we will not be able to assess it. This may impact on your project timescales.

If you do not provide these documents when we ask for them or they do not meet our requirements, your application may be rejected.

Please make sure your supporting documents meet the following requirements.

Application appendix spreadsheet

Detailed instructions on how to fill in the application appendix are set out below. All tabs must be fully completed and saved in the correct format.

Applicant business accounts

Refer to the guidance at question 1.10 for applicant business accounts evidence requirements.

Linked business accounts

We’ll need to see the accounts for any businesses that the applicant business is linked to, as described at question 1.11a. These need to meet the same requirements as set out at question 1.10.

New businesses or self-employed applicants

Refer to the guidance at question 1.10 for evidence requirements.

Consents and permissions

If your project needs planning permission, follow the guidance at question 7.2. You must have this in place before submitting your application. You should also submit the plans and drawings that were approved as part of your planning permission.

If you are a tenant, you must supply the relevant sections from your agreement as set out on the application form.

If you have obtained any other consents, licences or permissions for your project, please send copies to us.

Evidence of project funding

Refer to the guidance at question 5.4 for funding evidence requirements.

Quotes or other evidence of costs

Refer to Section 5 to see how many quotes or references to catalogue listings or tenders you need to provide for every project item. This also shows the requirements the quotes must meet.

Second-hand items

If you are proposing to purchase any project items second hand, you must get confirmation from the supplier covering all the points at question 5.10 and send it to us with the quote.

Irrecoverable VAT

Refer to the table at question 5.7 to check if you can include irrecoverable VAT in your project costs. If you think that you can, you need to send us a letter from an independent professionally qualified accountant that shows your VAT status and confirms that your business cannot recover the VAT you have included in the project costs.

Water abstraction licence

Please send a copy of the full abstraction licence granted by the Environment Agency (EA). You must have this in place before submitting your application.

Plans/drawings

If you’re building or expanding a reservoir or building a pump house, you will need to send us copies of the plans/drawings that have been approved by your LPA as part of your planning permission.

If you’re applying for irrigation equipment, you’ll need to provide a clear plan or drawing that shows the existing and proposed irrigation system. This must show where any underground distribution network will be, including the position of hydrants, diameter of pipe and its total length. The plan/drawing should also show connections to any existing reservoir(s) or infrastructure such as a distribution network.

Letters of Support from third parties

If you propose to supply water to other growers or work collaboratively to collect and store water and irrigate crops, you need to provide a letter or email of support from each business. It should be dated, clearly show the contact details for the business, provide the name of each party and set out the agreement details and term of the agreement.

How to fill in the application appendix spreadsheet

For a full application, you must complete the application form and appendix spreadsheet. You need to fill in 6 tabs on the spreadsheet. These are:

• Water management details
• A – Financial impact
• B – Costs and suppliers
• C – Funding and claims
• D – Project milestones
• E – Water Outputs

You need to fill in each tab in the order shown above, as some of the information you fill in will feed into and create the data in other tabs.

The information you enter in the Water Management details tab will automatically calculate your project outputs and enter them into tab E, Water Outputs. Check the entries are correct and if not you may need to amend your answer in the Water Management details tab.

The Water Management details tab, tab A (Financial impact) and tab E (Water Outputs) capture information on your current position and your forecasts for the future. Current means the existing situation (before undertaking the project). Forecast means what will happen after the project has been delivered and completed.

If you want to explain any of the information you enter in the appendix, you can use the appropriate questions in section 8 of the application form.

Water Management details tab

We will use the information you enter in this page to help us assess how well the project meets the Water Management Grant round 2 theme priorities.

Be realistic where we have asked you for forecasts, as we will expect to see evidence that the outputs you propose have been achieved. Where evidence is not available, or where a project fails to deliver contracted outputs, we may recover previously paid grant funding or withdraw the grant.

Application details

Enter your business name, project name, and the project reference number from the top of your ‘Invitation to submit a full application’ email.

Tell us about your business, the crops you grow and irrigate and your water management activities.

The information you provide should help us build a picture of the whole business and not just the activity happening specifically at the project location.

Question 1

Tell us which items you have included in your grant funded expenditure. Select from the drop-down list for each item. You cannot apply for grant towards items that are not included in this list.

Question 2a

Tell us about the crops you currently grow and irrigate and the irrigation systems you use. Complete the table with information for a typical year. Using the drop-down options, select the crops that you grow and irrigate. Against each crop, enter the area of land that is irrigated, in hectares. Select from the drop-down options the irrigation method you use for irrigating each crop and the energy source for that system.

You do not have to complete all the rows. If you do not currently irrigate any crops leave this table blank.

When completing the Crop Type column, if you grow and irrigate a crop that is not listed, select ‘other’ from the drop-down options. For example, field scale vegetables, other*. Provide details of the ‘other’ crops in Question 8.1.1 of the full application form. We may need to contact you for more information to help us process your application.

Only include the crops which your business grows and irrigates. If another business rents or uses some of your land to grow and irrigate crops, do not include the details of the crops other businesses grow here.

Question 2b

Tell us about all the crops and area of land you will irrigate once the project is complete. This should be the total area that will be irrigated, not just the additional area. Complete the table with your annual forecast of what you will grow and irrigate after completing the project.

Using the drop-down options, select each of the crops you will grow and irrigate. Against each crop enter the area of land that will be irrigated, in hectares. Select from the drop-down options the irrigation method that you will use for irrigating each crop and the energy source for that system.

You do not have to complete all the rows.

When completing the Crop Type column, if you grow and irrigate a crop that is not listed, select ‘other’ from the drop-down options. For example, Field scale vegetables, other*. Provide details of the ‘other’ crops in Question 8.1.1 of the full application form. We may need to contact you for more information to help us process your application.

Only include the crops that your business will grow and irrigate. If another business will rent or use some of your land to grow and irrigate crops, do not include the details of the crops the other businesses will grow here.

Question 3

Tell us where the water for your irrigation system currently comes from and where it will come from after the project. We cannot support projects where you will introduce or increase the use of summer surface water abstraction or mains water.

In the ‘current’ column, for each water source listed, enter the volume of water that you are currently using for irrigation. In the ‘forecast’ column, for each water source listed, enter the total volume of water that you will take from that source for irrigation, after the project is complete. The figures should be cubic metres (m³). Leave blank the water sources that you do not or will not use.

Question 4a and 4b

You must have an abstraction licence in place for what you have proposed. In table 4a tell us about the abstraction licences that you have and use the drop-down box to tell us whether you will be surrendering any of these as a result of the project activity. In table 4b tell us about any new licences you will use to carry out the project activity. Fill in the tables with the details of the abstraction licences, providing the licence reference number, name of the waterbody and the volume of water that can be abstracted. Select from the drop-down boxes the regional charging area, abstraction season and source.

If you have more licences than there are boxes, provide details of the others held at Question 8.1.4 in the full application form.

You’ll need to send us a copy of your abstraction licence(s) with your application so we can make sure it:

• is current and for your business
• is in place for a sufficient period
• corresponds with the details in the application
• details the period and purpose of abstraction
• details the maximum quantity of water to be abstracted
• has no conditions that disagree with the details in the application

Question 5

Tell us about the water storage facilities you currently have and the water storage facilities your project will install. In the ‘current’ column, against each water storage type listed, enter the volume of water that you store . In the ‘forecast’ column, enter the total volume of water that you will store, after the project. The figures should be m³. For example, if you currently have a 30,000 m³ reservoir and the project will build a new 50,000 m³ reservoir, enter 30,000 in the ‘current’ column and 80,000 in the ‘forecast’ column.

Question 6

Tell us about any rainwater harvesting to collect water from the roofs of glasshouses and farm buildings for crop irrigation on your farm. For each building that is used, or will be used, for rainwater harvesting, fill in one row. Enter the length and width of the building and select from the drop-down option whether the roof is pitched or flat. Select ‘yes’ or ‘no’ from the drop-down options in the ‘current’ column to tell us whether you are currently harvesting rainwater from the roof of each of the buildings listed. Select ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in the ‘future’ use column to tell us whether you will harvest rainwater from the roof of each building listed.

Question 7

Complete this section if you:

• are working collaboratively with or are selling water to other businesses
• will be working collaboratively with, or selling water to, other businesses in the future

Provide the name of the business and use the drop-down options to tell us whether you are (current) or will be (forecast) working collaboratively with the business or selling water to them.

If you are working collaboratively, this is working with other businesses to collect and store water and irrigate land for the purpose of growing crops. Selling water for use other than irrigating crops is not eligible – for example, if you intend to sell the water for domestic use or to local shops and businesses.

You cannot apply for a Water Management Grant if you intend to supply all the water stored to other businesses. To apply for a Water Management Grant you must be growing or intending to grow irrigated crops and use the project to irrigate your crops. This question is about whether you will share any surplus water with other farmers.

If you are working collaboratively with or selling water to another business, explain the nature of the collaboration or partnership at Question 8.1.2 in the full application form.

Question 8

Complete the ‘Current FTE’ field with the number of Full Time Equivalent (FTE) employees currently in your business / organisation. In the ‘Forecast FTE’ field, enter the total number of FTEs there will be after the project. The ‘number of jobs’ field will automatically calculate the number of FTE jobs created in the applicant business as a direct result of the project.

1 FTE is a minimum of 30 hours per week. For example, a person working 15 hours a week would be 0.5FTE and a person working 30 hours a week for 3 months would be 0.25FTE. FTEs include business partners and directors.

For each job created in the applicant business, explain at Question 8.1.3 in the full application form what each role is, their key responsibilities, the hours of work per week and when you expect the job will be filled. Tell us how you decided that the type and number of jobs are relevant and appropriate for the project. This question is not scored but we will monitor and record job creation as a project output.

Tab A: Financial impact

We need to understand how the purchase of the equipment or construction of the reservoir will financially benefit your business in the future.

Fill in the table, recording the additional costs or savings as a result of the project. Enter your annual forecast cost and income against each heading provided in the table. You should complete the table with your forecast costs and income for a typical year after the project has been completed and is operational. Your project will be operational when the reservoir has been constructed, the infrastructure and equipment is in use, new or additional crops are being grown, and any additional land will be irrigated. You may need to think ahead one or two years after the project works have been completed and you are growing and irrigating the crops listed in the application. Please do not amend or add to the headings in this table.

Tab B: Costs and suppliers

For each item of project expenditure, fill in:

• the supplier’s name
• the quoted amount (both including and excluding VAT)
• the supplier’s VAT and Companies House numbers (if registered)

You’ll need to provide these details for each supplier, starting with your preferred supplier and moving to the right to fill in the columns for the second and third suppliers.

You need to show all costs that are being included in your grant application.

It may be helpful to group similar costs from each supplier under one heading, for example, all building costs for pump house, ground works for reservoir construction. Such groupings should be supported by clear and detailed itemisation on all the supplier quotes.

You should also fill in the table under the main project expenditure table to show any non-grant funded project expenditure. These are costs that are critical to the project, but you are not asking for grant support for as it is an ineligible item. For example, a generator or solar panels to provide energy for the reservoir and irrigation equipment.

Tab C: Funding and claims

Much of the information in this tab will be copied across by the spreadsheet from the details you fill in on tab B.

You first need to confirm if you are including irrecoverable VAT in your project costs to make sure the correct costs are transferred in from tab B. Enter Y or N into the box on line 4.

You should then enter the requested grant % rate (column E) to work out the grant. For example, if you are requesting grant funding at 40%, enter 40 into the grant rate box. Do not use a % sign. You must use the same grant rate for all the lines or items requested.

Once you’ve entered the grant rate, the total grant amount requested will be automatically shown in column F.

Once the grant rate and grant amounts are complete, check the project cost summary table to make sure all details are correct.

Any declared non-grant funded expenditure will also be copied from the table you filled in on tab B.

You should then fill in the claims table at the right of the tab (columns H, J, L). You’ll need to put up to 3 claim dates on line 7 (you can overtype the date in red) and put the eligible cost that you plan to include in each claim for every item. The grant amount will be shown and the totals for each claim will be calculated at the bottom of the table.

As you allocate each item of expenditure to a claim, the figure in column N to the right of the claims table will show £0.00 (in green).

Expenditure remaining to be allocated to claims will be shown in red.

When setting your claim dates, think about when your costs will occur and when the invoice(s) will be paid in full. You do not have to have 3 claims, you can submit just one or 2. Some item costs such as reservoir construction may be spread out, so you may receive interim invoices as the works are completed. In such cases you may wish to submit 2 or 3 claims against one item.

Remember to space multiple claims about 3 months apart, to allow time for any project slippage and our processing and payment requirements. We may have to amend claim dates that are too close together.

For most costs it is likely that you’ll receive one invoice and so will then claim for the full cost after the item has been received, installed and paid for in full.

We do not normally pay grant until the item is fully installed and operational. However, there may be some instances where a large deposit must be paid at the point of ordering. In such cases you can claim up to 40% of the value of the item, and it should be clearly set out in your claim schedule.

Check that you’ve filled in the costs and claims table and checked to make sure that the project cost summary is correct. You should scroll down to check that the claim table at the bottom of the tab is also correct. This should accurately show when you plan to submit each claim, the total expenditure included in each claim and the grant amount you intend to claim.

If you have more than one claim, you must make sure that the final claim is at least 15% of the total grant amount being requested.

Tab D: Project milestones

Project milestones should show the key steps and stages of your planned project delivery, including what you’ll need to do and when. Fill in the table on this tab with the expected project start and completion dates, plus dates for achieving interim stages such as:

• starting of the reservoir construction work
• key stages in construction for example, completing ground works
• completing the pipework to fill the reservoir
• installing the underground water distribution main
• recruiting new employees
• planting new crops
• irrigating more land area
• other outputs or targets not listed on Tab E Water outputs that you will achieve following the project and that you will use to assess the success of your project

Tab E: Water outputs

The table on this tab lists the project outputs we expect your project to meet as part of the Water Management Grant round 2 grant outcomes. These will be entered as contractual obligations (to be delivered) in any GFA.

Outputs are the actual and real benefits that will result from your project which are used to show its success – you must be able to measure them.

The Water Management Grant Round 2 outputs are:

• increase in land area irrigated (ha)
• increase in reservoir storage capacity (m³)
• number of businesses benefitting
• number of new techniques
• number of new products
• reduction in annual summer surface water abstraction licenced volume in cubic metres (m³)
• reduction in borehole abstraction volume in cubic metres (m³)
• reduction in mains water use volume in cubic metres (m³)
• number of FTE jobs created

The table entries will automatically populate from the details you have entered in the Water Management details tab. Check that you are satisfied these are appropriate and achievable. To change the information that appears in the Outputs table you will need to amend the information in the Water Management details tab.

For each output complete the ‘Year achieved’ column. Select the year the output will be fully achieved from the drop-down options. Year 1 will begin after the project works have been completed and when you will use the project infrastructure and equipment, when you will grow any new crops, and when you will irrigate the additional area of land.

The new products and crops that will be achieved are listed below. This information is taken from the information you enter in the Water Management details tab.

Be realistic in your forecasts as we will expect to see evidence that all outputs you propose have been achieved. Where evidence isn’t available or where a project fails to deliver agreed outputs and results, we may have to ask you to repay or withdraw the grant.

Projects that do not create any outputs or will not offer value for money will not be supported.

The table below shows definitions of some of the outputs and the evidence you’ll need to collect to show you’ve achieved them:

Output	Definition	Evidence required
Increase in land area irrigated (ha)	As a result of the project there will be an increase in the area of land that is irrigated (ha) annually.	The full application form, claims, site visits and monitoring reports will show us whether there has been an increase in land area irrigated as a result of the project. You should establish systems and processes to record the total area of land that is irrigated annually and records to show the additional irrigated area enabled by the project. You will also need to record the crops that area grown and irrigated each year and the method of irrigation used.
Increase in reservoir storage capacity (m3)	The project will build a new water storage reservoir. You must provide details of the volume of the reservoir (m3).	The full application form, quotes, claims, invoices, photographs and site visits will show us whether the reservoir storage capacity has increased. Make sure you keep records to show the size of the reservoir created and the volume of water that can be stored.
Number of businesses benefiting	A business will directly benefit from the project if it is receiving water for crop irrigation using the new project equipment and infrastructure.	Documentation showing the volume of water received used by all businesses for crop irrigation, from the new project equipment and infrastructure, provide each year in annual monitoring reports. This may include letters or emails from the businesses to explain the volume of water they have received, or a copy of an invoice which shows the volume of water sold.
Number of FTE jobs created	A job created is a new, permanent, paid full time equivalent (FTE) job that will be created as a direct result of the project. The job must not have existed with that employer in the UK prior to the project being carried out. A job ‘safeguarded’ by the project does not count as a job created. A ‘permanent’ job means it will be in place for at least 1 year from the point at which it is filled. ‘FTE’ means the job must be a minimum of 30 hrs per week. Part time jobs should be calculated on a pro-rata basis e.g. 1 part time job working 15 hrs a week counts at 0.5 FTE. Voluntary work cannot be counted as a job created, but self-employment can be. Seasonal jobs may be counted where this is normal practice for an industry, the job must exist for a minimum of 4 weeks per annum and are counted on a pro-rata basis. e.g. 1 seasonal job in place for 4 weeks would equate to 0.08 FTE. A job is considered to have been created once the post is advertised. Apprenticeship positions funded through an apprenticeship scheme must not be included under jobs created.	Written confirmation from a senior staff member from the supported business confirming the creation of a post as a result of the support provided. This should include details of its start date, duration and number of hours.
Number of new techniques	A new technique is a new piece of technology that is introduced to the business. The piece of technology will not currently be used by the business.	The full application form, claims, photographs, monitoring reports and site visits will show us if a new technique has been created for the business.
Number of new products	A new product will be when a new crop is grown and irrigated as a result of the project. These are crops that are not currently grown and irrigated by the business.	You will need to tell us in your claim forms and monitoring reports the area of crops that are grown and irrigated each year. You should establish systems and processes to record and evidence the crops that are grown and irrigated each year.
Reduction in annual summer surface water abstraction licenced volume (m3)	The amount of annual summer surface water abstraction that has been reduced (m3) as a result of the project.	The full application form will show us if annual summer surface water abstraction will be reduced. Claim forms and monitoring reports should provide details of the current abstraction licences held by the business and the volumes of water used by the business. You should establish systems and processes to record and evidence the volume of summer surface water abstraction use.
Reduction in borehole abstraction volume (m3)	The amount of annual borehole water use that has been reduced (m3) as a result of the project.	The full application form will show us if annual borehole water use will be reduced. Claim forms and monitoring reports should provide details of your borehole water use. You should establish systems and processes to record and evidence the volume of borehole water use.
Reduction in mains water use volume (m3)	The amount of annual mains water use that has been reduced (m3) as a result of the project.	The full application form will show us if annual mains water use will be reduced. Claim forms and monitoring reports should provide details of your mains water use. You should establish systems and processes to record and evidence the volume of mains water use.