What the action involves
This action’s aim is to manage ditches that either:
- support target species of plants, birds, mammals and invertebrates
- are important for delivering habitats such as wet grassland, wetland, lowland peat and floodplain meadow
The purpose is to improve the biodiversity of the ditch and provide wet conditions for the adjacent land parcels.
What you must do
Your Natural England adviser will assess your land. They’ll work with you to adapt and agree the activities you must do to achieve this action’s aim. All mandatory activities will be set out in your agreement document.
To get paid for this action, you must:
- manage ditch lengths rotationally by methods agreed with your adviser, normally between September and March to avoid disturbing wildlife
- leave one side of the ditch (or sections of the ditch) unmanaged during any one operation as a refuge for species to recolonise the ditch
- spread silt and vegetation cuttings thinly in the adjacent field – do not fill hollows or low areas in the field or spread on historic or archaeological features
- allow bankside vegetation to naturally regenerate after ditch management – you can top bankside vegetation to control injurious weeds and re-establish the sward
- maintain ditch water levels to a suitable depth for the ditch and adjacent habitats
The advice you’re given from Natural England is specific to your land which means (where relevant) you may also need to:
- cut above the base of the ditch leaving the roots in the base where vegetation in the ditch is removed by cutting
- retain a fringe of emergent vegetation on one or both sides of the ditch
- cut vegetation at the top of the ditch bank, leaving uncut sections as wildlife habitat
- manage the cuttings so they do not damage the ditch habitat
- trim hedges beside the ditch
- control invasive non-native species
You must not:
- re-profile or increase the width or depth of the ditch (unless agreed with your adviser)
- allow vegetation to overhang more than half the width of the channel, along the majority of the ditch length (unless the ditch runs alongside woodland)
- use permanent fencing next to ditches (unless agreed with your adviser)
- manage all ditches in any one year (unless agreed with your adviser)
When to do it
You must do this action each year of its duration.
Evidence to keep
You must keep evidence to show what you have done to complete this action. If it’s not clear that you have done this action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve its aim, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) may ask for this evidence.
You must supply the evidence if they ask for it, including:
- field operations at a parcel level
- associated invoices
- photographs relevant to the action
Where you can do it
You can do this action where you have control of both sides of a ditch.
Where control is limited to one side of a ditch, you can still do this action if you’re able to achieve the aims.
You must get approval from your Natural England adviser to do this action.
You cannot do this action on ditches managed by third parties such as Internal Drainage Boards.
Eligible land
You can do this action on land that’s:
- an eligible land type
- registered with an eligible land cover on your digital maps
- declared with a land use code which is compatible with the eligible land cover
Available area
Not applicable, as this is a linear action – you can choose what length of eligible ditches to enter into this action.
Rotational or static
This action is static. This means you must do it at the same location each year of this action’s duration.
Consents and permissions
To apply for this action, you’ll need:
- Scheduled Monument Consent from Historic England for any work on scheduled monuments
- consent from Natural England for any activity on land designated as a site of special scientific interest (SSSI)
- to obtain necessary consents from the Environment Agency, Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA) or Internal Drainage Board (IDB) before starting any work
You may need to:
- get advice from your Natural England adviser if you have other archaeological or historic features on your agreement land
- get a wildlife licence from Natural England if your management affects a protected species or their habitat
All archaeological and historic features (including scheduled monuments) are identified in your Historic Environment Farm Environment Record (HEFER).
If you’re a tenant, it’s your responsibility to check whether your tenancy agreement allows you to complete what’s required in the actions you choose. You may need your landlord’s consent.
Capital grants that support it
You can also apply for capital items to help you achieve the action’s aims. Your Natural England adviser will discuss eligible capital items with you.
