Peatland ACTION - Fund - How to apply

Before applying applicants should however, check whether their proposed restoration activities meets the peatland restoration funding eligibility requirements. This guidance also includes information on available SRDP funding options to support peatland restoration

In addition to the proposed restoration activities, outcomes and eligibility requirements we also consider value for money, the opportunity for attracting other sources of finance, and the level of risk attached to project delivery within specified timescales. We consider the size of project; severity of damage; value for money; location; time frame; quality of application. Furthermore, we will measure and report on benefits such as water catchments, crofting land, heavily degraded peat and land where wider benefits to nature can be demonstrated.

All projects will be considered based on the total area size and total project cost. Multi-year projects will be based on the whole project area for the entire project length, even if this is spread out over multiple years. 

Please ensure applications are completed with all the questions fully and clearly answered. With such a significant demand your application will be assessed on the information provided as we will be unable to make requests for missing information. 

Further information relating to assessment scoring.

All applications will be required to confirm cash contributions. 

Only upfront cash contributions will be accepted as eligible financial contributions to bring down overall project costs.  In-kind contributions will not be eligible. We are encouraging a minimum level of 20% private finance. 

The larger private finance contribution by the applicant will be reflected during the assessment process and scored accordingly, as it demonstrates a strong financial commitment and investment towards the positive restoration of peatland 

Applicants will need to confirm if the cash contribution is a fixed or percentage contribution at the point of application.

A landlord declaration form must be completed. If you are a tenant of the land covered in your funding application, this form must be completed and signed by both you and your landlord. The statement to be signed by all relevant landowners agreeing to 10-year compliance period for all land management and site improvement works funded through Peatland ACTION. All successful Peatland ACTION projects are required to confirm landowner permission for the works to take place and permission for any subsequent maintenance over a period of 10 years - the Peatland ACTION maintenance compliance period.  These permissions are confirmed via a signed copy of a completed Landowner Declaration form. 

Further information on Landowner Permission and Partnership Agreements is available on our website.

• NatureScot will not fund the 10-year maintenance period and associated activity. 
• All sites must be maintained in the condition created with Peatland ACTION funds to enable the longer-term benefits to be realised.
• In the event that a site is sold, the Peatland ACTION maintenance obligations must be included within the sale contract.
• The maintenance compliance obligations will be included within the Terms and Conditions of the Funding Offer issued and are binding on acceptance of the offer.

Refer to our Standard Terms and Conditions of Funding for further information.

Where possible, we want restoration projects to complete by 31 December in each financial year to avoid the significant impacts of winter weather.  Our final date for completion of site-based and non-site-based restoration activities is 31 March in each financial year, and these activities must be claimed for by 15 April in each financial year.

Where you have identified a multiyear programme of work you should schedule activity into discrete projects or phases that can be fully delivered and costed within each financial year (1 April to 31 March).  

It is important that you complete the application form fully.  If your application does not contain all the information, we need to complete our assessment, we may return it to you for revision and re-submission. See our application and guidance web page for further information. 

Your application must take into account any designated sites that lie within or adjacent to your land.

There are three categories of designations that may impact on an application:

1. Natural heritage designations: Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and Natura sites – Special Protection Area (SPA) and Special Area of Conservation (SAC)
2. Landscape and recreational designations: National Scenic Area, Regional Park, Country Park, National Park

You can find details of these designations using NatureScot Data Services and specifically our NatureScot SiteLink and our NatureScot SiteLink Map Search.  You can also get advice on these designations from your local NatureScot Office, or you can get in touch with us at [email protected].  We recommend you do this as early as possible before you make your application.

3. Historic and archaeological designations: Scheduled Monuments or archaeological remains (features/sites)

You can get advice on scheduled monuments and the scheduled monument consent process from:  

Historic Environment Scotland, Longmore House, Salisbury Place, Edinburgh EH9 1SH.

 Tel: 0131 668 8716  

email:  [email protected]. 

The local planning authority’s archaeology team can advise on archaeological remains (features/sites). 

You must send us monthly reports about the progress with your approved activities, for the duration of your project.  A progress report may or may not include a claim for payment of funds (further information and guidance for applicant on reporting and payments).

Fair Work First is the Scottish Government's flagship policy for driving high quality and fair work across the labour market in Scotland. This is increasingly being implemented by applying fair work criteria to grants, other funding and contracts being awarded across the public sector, where relevant to do so.

Further information can be found in Fair Work First - guidance for funding applicants.

Terms of Conditions

As the applicant, you must accept our Standard Terms and Conditions of Funding.  These are non-negotiable as set out in the Standard Terms and Conditions of Funding, on our website.

In addition, further mandatory special conditions apply to all Peatland ACTION Fund projects.

Financial Information and Records Guidance

One of the Conditions of receiving a grant from us is that you keep sufficient financial information and records relating to your Project. 

Funding Privacy Notice.

 Please read our Funding Privacy Notice which outlines how our use of personal data complies with data protection law

One of the conditions of receiving funding from us is that you acknowledge our funding of your project during your Contract Period. This will be outlined in your Funding Offer. The Progress and Claim form will ask you to tell us what you have done to acknowledge our funding.

Please see our guidance on using the Peatland ACTION logo and other ways to acknowledge our funding of your project.

You can follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn and don't forget to tag @NatureScot and use our hashtag #PeatlandACTION especially if we've funded your peatland restoration project.

You must comply with the Peatland ACTION Guidance on how to acknowledge our support for your project that is available on our website.

Please note – you should not promote your award until we have received signed Acceptance of your Offer. We will be back in touch with you when you have accepted your award to outline your options for promoting your project. 

Guidance to inform your awareness of peatland restoration or improve your understanding of peatland restoration techniques (including making sure that there are no negative impacts on wildlife or the wider environment), and their sustainable management –  our peatland restoration guidance web page provides information on protection, restoration and long term management.

A peat depth and peatland condition survey is required to inform restoration planning and confirm Peatland ACTION fund eligibility. In most cases peat depth and condition survey data must be submitted along with your Peatland ACTION funding application.

Peatland restoration projects fall under Class 20A under The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development and Use Classes) (Scotland) Amendment Order 2020) it is important that you read and act of the following information: 

• The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development and Use Classes) (Scotland) Amendment Order 2020, introduces new Class 20A, specifying permitted development rights (PDR) for peatland restoration projects. This means that full planning permission is not required for peatland restoration projects but there is still a planning process (prior notification / prior approval) to go through.  
• The prior notification / prior approval (PN/PA) process is a two-stage process, which allows a planning authority to consider whether a proposal requires closer scrutiny before it is approved. This process must be gone through before the restoration works can begin.     
• Most of the information needed to submit a prior notification will be provided as part of the development of a Peatland Action project.  We strongly recommend that you have all permissions in place prior to submitting your Peatland ACTION application 
• More information is available in the Scottish Government Planning Circular (Advice and Guidance).  and further Prior Notification guidance.

The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (2015) (the Regulations) apply to all peatland restoration projects.   

All applications must demonstrate that the necessary steps have been taken during the planning and design stages to ensure compliance with the Regulations. 

Information on the Regulations and the responsibilities for all involved in a restoration project is available in our guidance note. 

All peatland restoration must ensure adequate protection measures are in place to protect environmental sensitivities, such as water courses. Water protection measures must comply with the Environmental Authorisations (Scotland) Regulations 2018 (EASR). All protection measures should be designed, planned and fully costed as part of the project development process to ensure features are protected during the delivery phase of restoration. Temporary water protection measures, including bog mats and temporary bridges, are often covered under General Binding Rules (GBRs). Any restoration of peatland erosion features which appear on a 1:50,000 scale Ordnance Survey will require authorisation under EASR. Natural watercourses of any scale should not be restored. These should be buffered during the design process. 

Our Guidance note - Assessing herbivore impacts  sets out the approach NatureScot Peatland ACTION will undertake for all applications to assess potential herbivore impacts. For all new applications, applicants will need to demonstrate that the current grazing pressures across the restoration area are within sustainable levels. 

When undertaking restoration work, all parties involved must ensure that there are no negative impacts on protected species.  

Applicants / agents will be required to take on responsibility for organising species surveys required in the pre-operational and operational phases of project delivery. Financial support will be provided for these which will need to be detailed in the application. Further information on this is outlined in the Guidance note - Changes to supporting for species surveys protection for Peatland ACTION projects.  

Our species survey guidance notes set out protocols that all parties involved in peatland restoration are required to follow to ensure that they stay within the constraints of the law.   

• Peatland Restoration and Breeding birds 
• Species survey guidance and templates for field ecologists

Spatial data is important to allow us to monitor and report on the effectiveness of the Peatland ACTION Fund.  There are two key stages when you need to submit spatial data, we require spatial data to be submitted with your application, and with your final report. 

When you are applying for funding for your project you must submit spatial data of the proposed work for your restoration project(s) with your application. 

Application stage

• Site boundaries - (site outline and restoration footprint) to be restored*
• Site features to be restored (e.g. drains, gullies and bare peat etc.)
• Location of site-based restoration activities (e.g. installation of dams, re-profiling, bare peat planting, mulching etc.)
• Your access routes.
• Spatial data templates (includes guidance notes and how to videos) 

Once you have completed your project

You will need to submit spatial data of the completed work along with a Final Report upon completion of your restoration project. 

Final report, at the end of the completed project

Site boundaries (site outline and restoration footprint) of restored area(s)*

Site features that were restored

Location of site-based restoration activities that were completed.

*Please use the guidance Site boundaries - what are they and how do I draw them? available on our website.

Further information on the Final Report will be issued with your grant offer.   

Spatial data templates and Final Report template 

Site boundaries - (site outline and restoration footprint) to be restored*

Data standards

To manage and share information in a consistent way, we have developed a standard data structure which must be used for submitting your data; this includes GIS projects and spreadsheet templates.  All data produced must comply with the following data standards:

Spatial data must be provided in the format specified by the spatial data templates available on our website (ArcGIS Pro and QGIS).

All data must be provided with full metadata.  Please use the geospatial metadata template available on our website.

If a background map was used to derive (digitise) spatial data, please specify which background map you have used for licensing purposes.

If you don’t have access to GPS or GIS for mapping purposes, we may be able to arrange for one of the Peatland ACTION team to carry out any mapping on your behalf.  Please email [email protected] and we’ll arrange for one of the team to get in touch with you. 

The Peatland Code is part of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) UK Peatland Programme. It is a voluntary certification standard for UK peatland projects wishing to market the climate benefits of peatland restoration and provides assurances to voluntary carbon market buyers that the climate benefits being sold are real, quantifiable, additional and permanent.  

Much of the data gathered for a Peatland ACTION project application can be used to inform a separate Peatland Code application. Processes and applications can run in tandem.  

If you have decided to undertake a Peatland ACTION funded peatland restoration project and would like your project to also be Peatland Code validated, and later verified visit the IUCN UK Peatland Programme web pages on the Peatland Code for further information and guidance on this or contact the IUCN Peatland Code team. 

List of answers to frequently asked questions from applicants considering peatland restoration and the peatland code.

In order to support greater levels of peatland restoration and try to leverage additional funding sources and reduce the risks involved in committing capital to restoration projects, we are piloting a new funding – Carbon Contracts – mechanism. 

As the applicant, you will be responsible for delivery of the approved activities within agreed timescales, as per the Terms and Conditions of Funding.  If you are unsure about your obligations, we advise you to take professional or legal advice.

Use of agents

• You may appoint an agent to act on your behalf.  We recommend that you have an agreement with your agent setting out the terms of the funding contract you expect them to fulfil on your behalf.  However, your agent cannot sign in acceptance of any Funding Offer we make.
• Our funding contract will be with you, and you will be responsible for compliance with the terms and conditions of funding, for a period of up to 10 (ten) years.  You will be responsible for making sure any necessary permissions or consents are in place prior to work commencing.  You will also be responsible for sending us regular monthly progress reports on time.  The schedule for reporting will be outlined in any Funding Offer.
• Our standard process is to make payments in arrears direct to the applicant, via BACS.  However, in some cases, you can ask us to make payments direct to your appointed agent.  We will provide you with the necessary documentation to allow such payments to be made.
• We cannot pay any VAT that you are able to reclaim from HM Revenue and Customs.  If you are not able to reclaim VAT from HM Revenue and Customs, we will pay for irrecoverable VAT and you should include any irrecoverable VAT in your project costs.  However, if you are able to reclaim VAT, but your agent is not and you want your agent to receive payments on your behalf, we won’t pay for any irrecoverable VAT incurred by your agent.

Use of Contractors

• Where you appoint a contractor to undertake works on your behalf, you will be responsible for making sure that they are sufficiently competent and qualified to do the work, and that safe working practices are followed.  This will be addressed when defining key duty holder roles under The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (2015).
• It is important that all approved activity is delivered within agreed timescales.  Where possible, contractors should be asked to complete works by 31 December in each financial year (1 April to 31 March) to avoid the significant impacts of winter weather.  Our final date for completion of site-based restoration activities is 31 March in each financial year (1 April to 31 March) at the latest, unless we agree otherwise in writing.  Please note that activities must be delivered in the financial year (1 April to 31 March) in which they are scheduled and claimed for by 15 April in each financial year (1 April to 31 March).
• You must have a formal agreement with your contractors setting out the terms of agreement.  This is to make sure they are able to complete all approved activity in time to allow you to fulfil the terms of any funding contract.  
• We will not make payment direct to contractors.

Snow day enhancement payments policy (2023/24 to 2025/26) (eligibility requirements, what costs are covered and claim process).