Peatland ACTION - Mandatory special conditions for restoration fund projects

As the applicant, you must accept our non-negotiable Standard Terms and Conditions of Funding. 

In addition, further mandatory special conditions apply to all NatureScot Peatland ACTION restoration fund projects. These are listed in the document below.

Mandatory special conditions for all NatureScot Peatland ACTION restoration fund projects

The following additional mandatory special conditions apply to all Peatland ACTION Fund projects.  Please note that we may apply further special conditions depending on the exact nature of your project.  You must accept all terms and conditions of funding (standard, mandatory and special) before starting any works.

1. Contractual agreement

A contractual agreement must be put in place between you and your appointed contractors, suppliers and professional advisors as well as any agent working on your behalf.  This is to ensure that all parties are committed to working in good faith to deliver the grant-funded project as detailed in this Funding Offer, enabling you to fulfil the Terms of Grant.  

The agreement should outline: 
-    Individual responsibilities to ensure the project can deliver to the required timescales, in each Financial Year, and standards (as further detailed in the Statement of Requirements and the Tender Submission).  This includes the timely submission of progress reports, claims and final report.
-    Steps to be taken in the event that one of the parties is unable to fulfil their requirements as part of the agreement
-    Any agreed penalties needed to protect the interests of the individual parties to the agreement
-    You must submit a copy of the contractual agreement to your Funding Officer within 4 weeks of this Offer.
 

2. Acknowledging our funding

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. 

3. Use of information

All information collected in your project will be submitted to NatureScot and made freely available for reuse.  The information, including the spatial data, will be used for NatureScot legitimate interests. These include, but are not limited to, reporting on the Peatland Action programme outcomes and informing the development of policy and guidance on sustainable management and restoration of peatland.  The data will also be shared with research communities (to support the national research programme on climate change mitigation and land use management) and any other party NatureScot considers relevant.  The data will be made available for reuse under the Open Government Licence and will be freely available for download from public domains such as SEWeb, NBN Atlas Scotland and Scotland’s Soils.  Personal information will be handled in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation and any other relevant legislation, please refer to our Funding Privacy Notice.

4. Maps

All work supported by this grant refers to sites described and mapped in your application.  Any changes agreed will need to be supported by revised maps and associated spatial data.

5. Spatial data

All interim and final reports must be supported by spatial data submitted in our approved format.  All completed site-based restoration activities must be mapped by the end of your project and spatial data complying with our data standards, must be submitted to us with your Final Report.  

6. Licences, permissions or consents

All relevant licences, permissions or consents must be confirmed before work commences and are the responsibility of the applicant.  This includes SEPA licences, felling permissions, SSSI consents, local planning authority permissions or any other permissions relating to designated sites, land use or land ownership, where appropriate.  You will need to provide evidence prior to starting your project, unless we agree otherwise, in writing.

7. ‘Success and failures’ report

Following completion of the capital works paid for by this project you must provide a report on management success and failures of the project five years from the date of your final grant payment.  This is to allow us to understand the impact of the restoration work on the site.

8. Site maintenance 

Site improvements must be maintained for the full duration of the Contract Period (duration of the project) and 10 years from the date of your final grant payment. This includes maintenance of site-based restoration works should they suffer any deer or livestock damage and no muirburn on restoration sites for the period. 

9. Start date agreement

Where not already agreed, the Start Date for your project must be agreed with your Funding Officer within 4 weeks of this Funding Offer date. If you do not start the approved restoration activity within an agreed period, we reserve the right to reduce or withdraw our Funding Offer.  You must inform your Funding Officer when the project starts.

10. Site visit

You must arrange for a site visit from the Peatland Action Project Officer to verify the work is complete and agree the completion date before contractors leave the site.  This is to make sure that works have been completed to a satisfactory standard.  Final claims will not be assessed for payment without an inspection visit, unless we have previously agreed in writing that a visit is not needed.

11. Final report

You must provide a Final Report within 21 days after the project completion date and before the final payment.  The guidance Final Report template attached to this Funding Offer sets out the requirements.  Note we will not assess a final claim for payment without a final report that meets the required standard.  Failure to submit the report within 21 days may result in penalties. 

12. Monthly progress reports and claims 

You must submit monthly progress reports, spatial data and claims throughout the duration of your project.  The schedule for progress reports and claims will be noted in Section 4 of this Funding Offer.  We reserve the right to withhold funds if you do not submit progress reports and claims on time.  Monthly progress reports should detail: 
–    Number of hectares (ha) competed and money (£) spent in the reporting period
–    Any risks or issues anticipated that might impact delivery in the financial year
–    If the project is on track to complete approved activity by the agreed completion date, in each financial year (1 April to 31 March)
–    If the project is on track to spend to full budget by the agreed completion date, in each financial year (1 April to 31 March).

13. Delivery schedule

It is important that your project adheres to the agreed delivery schedule outlined in this Funding Offer.  The schedule of works (and costs) detailed in each financial year (1 April to 31 March) must be delivered in the financial year (1 April to 31 March) in which they are scheduled.  The schedule of works (and costs) cannot be revised without prior approval, in writing, from the Peatland Action Funding Officer.  We will not pay for any unapproved changes.    

14. Demobalisation and remobilisation

If a contractor demobilises from site without permission from the NatureScot Funding Officer, NatureScot will not cover the demobilisation costs or any future re-mobilisation costs.

15. CDM regs - guidance

Please refer to our website Peatland ACTION Restoration and The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015.

The Construction (Design & Management) Regulations (CDM) apply to the design and construction of all peatland restoration projects, and for all maintenance and restoration works undertaken during the Contract Period that come under the definition of Construction Work in those Regulations.  Please refer to Health & Safety Executive website for the CDM Regulations, HSE guidance (L153) and CITB Industry Guidance for information on CDM compliance.
 

16. CDM regs – responsibilities of the applicant

By accepting this funding offer, the applicant accepts they are wholly responsible for the duties of the Client under the Construction (Design & Management) Regulations, making suitable arrangements for managing a project, including the allocation of sufficient time and other resources, to ensure that all Construction Work is carried out, so far as is reasonably practicable, without risks to the health or safety of any person affected by the project.

As Client, the applicant must ensure that those appointed to undertake the role of Designer, Contractor (and where applicable) Principal Designer and Principal Contractor, are fully aware of their respective duties and have the skills, knowledge and experience to carry out their Work in a way that secures health and safety.

Prior to works commencing, a Letter of Appointment for the Contractor (or where relevant, the Principal Contractor) must be submitted to your Funding Officer.  The Letter of Appointment must be kept up to date in the event of a change in the appointed organisation. Peatland ACTION may also request supporting documentation such as Pre-construction Information, Construction Phase Health and Safety Plan and Health and Safety File and these must be made available upon request.

17. Subcontractors

Where elements of delivery will be undertaken through sub-contracts, we expect open and fair competition to be demonstrated.  Applicants must provide details of all sub-contract tendering and the sub-contracting arrangements including the delivery schedule and costs.  Any increase in sub-contracting costs that will impact the total cost of the restoration works must not be agreed without prior approval, in writing, by your Funding Officer.  We reserve the right to decline the proposed sub-contract based on quality as well as costs.

18. Living wage

You will pay at least the real Living Wage to all directly employed project staff, including apprentices. Any member of staff employed by sub-contractors or agency staff engaged in the delivery of the project must also be paid at least the real Living Wage. Guidance on the evidence you must provide, and keep to show compliance, is provided in Fair Work First - guidance for funding applicants.

19. Effective Workers’ Voice

You will ensure there are appropriate processes for “Effective Workers’ Voice”. All workers employed in the delivery of the project must have an appropriate effective voice as defined in Fair Work First - guidance for funding applicants. (This is not applicable to sole traders or private individuals). 

20. Private contributions

You must provide evidence of all private contributions to your project, in each financial year.

21. Protected species

The applicant/agent is responsible for ensuring that there are no negative impacts on protected species and that all restoration work is carried out in compliance with the law.

22. Protected species guidance

You must follow best practice guidance, available on the NatureScot website, to ensure appropriate protection is in place.

23. Protected species surveys

All relevant protected species surveys and, if required a species licence(s), must be in place before work commences. You must provide the following evidence prior to starting your project:

• Up-to-date constraints map showing species buffers; and
• If your project requires a species licence, you will need to provide the licence number.

If your project includes species surveys which are being funded by Peatland Action, you must provide the following:

• Evidence of the tendering process
• Evidence of Ecologist Recognised Credentials or concise CV
• The licence number of any species licences if applicable.

In addition, you must provide the following with each claim:

• Updated constraints map including species buffers 
• Staff timesheet(s) or consultant invoice(s)

Upon project completion you must provide the following with your final claim and Final Report:

• Evidence of uploaded species survey results to National Biodiversity Network Gateway
• It is the grantees responsibility to retain all copies of pre-operational species survey results, with supporting spatial data, in a suitable format, and Species licence(s), as required.

24. National Biodiversity Network Atlas Scotland (NBN)

You will promote the National Biodiversity Network Atlas Scotland (NBN) and encourage data owners to record species observations, be it occurrence or absence, with informative attributes. Permission must be obtained from data owners for upload of the data onto the NBN Atlas Scotland and for it to be made fully available under the Creative Commons licence CC-BY or CC0 (any exceptions to using these licences must be agreed in writing by NatureScot prior to the start of the project). 

In this you must use your best endeavours to ensure that: 

• Data is captured digitally, following NBN standards and guidance
• Data is uploaded to the NBN Atlas Scotland at capture resolution and with informative attributes under the Creative Commons Licence
• Data is made fully available to NatureScot without restriction and in perpetuity. This includes the right to utilise the data in partnership with others
• The resolution at which data can be viewed & accessed for use publicly from NBN should only be degraded if there is a strong justification and agreement between Plantlife International and NatureScot
• You must identify the most appropriate route to upload data onto the NBN Atlas in a manner that will secure the validity of the records and guard against data duplication
• You should digitise your records as an on-going activity. Data should be uploaded to the NBN Atlas routinely and, subject to practical constraints such as validation, at least annually or as agreed by NatureScot.

25. Material change

Should any qualifying conditions or terms of handling within all necessary licences, permissions or consents, result in a material change to the timing or footprint of works as stipulated in the original grant application form, then Peatland Action reserves the right to reduce or withdraw our Funding Offer. Once all necessary licences, permissions or consents have been obtained, funding should be confirmed with the Peatland Action Funding Officer before committing or mobilising resources and NatureScot is not liable for any costs should resources be committed without formal confirmation. 

26. Contract Period

Please note that the Terms and Conditions of the Grant Contract will apply for the duration of the Project and for 10 years from the date of your final payment of Grant. This is the Contract Period.