HEF1: Maintain weatherproof traditional farm or forestry buildings

No substantive changes have been made to this action for SFI26 (compared with the SFI24 version).

This action’s aim is that there are:

• traditional farm or forestry buildings maintained in good condition
• where relevant, preserved and accessible features used by bats, owls and kestrels

The purpose of this is to:

• enhance the local landscape
• preserve places for wildlife

What you must do

To maintain the traditional farm or forestry building in good condition, you must:

• complete a visual building maintenance assessment to check the building’s condition and identify any areas that need routine maintenance work or minor repairs to keep it weatherproof
• carry out any necessary routine maintenance work and minor repairs on a ‘like for like’ basis using traditional materials and methods (unless non-traditional material has previously been used)
• maintain any existing areas where a non-traditional material has previously been used to repair or re-clad the building, such as corrugated iron sheeting to cover roofs

To make sure there are preserved and accessible features for bats, owls and kestrels, you must:

• complete a visual building wildlife assessment to identify any existing use of the building by these species
• retain any existing features used by these species that you’ve identified in the building wildlife assessment
• install an owl, bat or kestrel box if you’ve identified they’re required in the building wildlife assessment

If you identify bat activity, you must:

• get advice from a licensed ecological consultant before you carry out routine maintenance work or minor repairs on the building
• follow any advice from the ecological consultant about when work can be undertaken on the building’s fabric
• comply with the relevant legal requirements for advice and licences

You must produce:

• a photographic record of the condition of the building as at this action’s start date
• a written or photographic record of each visual building maintenance assessment you complete
• a written or photographic record of the routine maintenance work or minor repairs completed, including when the work was done
• a written record of the building wildlife assessment

You must not sell the building, or convert it to non-agricultural or forestry use during this action’s 3-year duration.

When to do it

You must:

• complete the visual building maintenance assessment and building wildlife assessment at least once each year of this action’s 3-year duration
• carry out any necessary routine maintenance work or minor repairs within 12 months of identification, or by this action’s end date if the need is identified during the final year – unless bat activity has been identified and the ecologist’s advice is to carry out works later
• install owl, bat or kestrel boxes, as relevant, within 12 months of this action’s start date, if you’ve identified they’re required

Where you can do it

To be eligible for this action, the traditional farm or forestry building, or parts of a building, must:

• have been built using traditional methods, such as timber, brick, stone, tile or slate
• have been built before 1940 for agricultural or forestry use
• still be in agricultural or forestry use on your farm or land holding, whether or not this was the original use
• be in good condition – this means the fabric of the building is intact, so it’s weatherproof

You must have management control of the eligible farm or forestry building for the 3-year duration of this action.

You cannot do this action if the building:

• is a metal-framed Dutch barn
• was constructed as a dwelling
• is a farmhouse, residential or domestic building

Rotational or static

This action is static. This means you must do it at the same location each year of this action’s duration.

Evidence to keep

You must keep:

• the required records identified in ‘what to do’
• any receipted invoices (or bank statements where a receipted invoice is unavailable), consents or permissions connected with the work
• a record of advice you’ve received from a licensed ecological consultant and any required wildlife licence

You must supply this evidence if we ask for it.