Skip to content

50% OFFfirst report

Gov Owed
Open nowSector-specificVerified 6 Nov 2026

England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO)

Forestry Commission (funded through the Defra Trees Programme)

Check if you qualifyFree to check · no sign-up · full report £19.95

Worth

No set amount

Deadline

Rolling - no fixed deadline

Type of funding

Grant

Where

England

What it is

A grant to plant new woodland on at least 1 hectare of land you own or manage in England: up to £10,200 per hectare for planting and fencing, £400 per hectare a year for 15 years of upkeep, and up to £12,700 per hectare more for public benefits. It is competitive and takes 3 to 5 months to process.

Checked 6 Nov 2026 on gov.uk: open all year. Pays up to £10,200 per hectare in capital costs, £400 per hectare a year for 15 years, and optional extra payments (for example up to £3,300 per hectare for nature recovery, £1,100 per hectare on low sensitivity land). Minimum 1 hectare in England. Apply by 31 May to plant in the next season; applications after October are unlikely to plant this coming season. Work must not start before the agreement.

Official source

Who can apply

A summary of the main rules, not the full list. Forestry Commission (funded through the Defra Trees Programme) decides who is eligible, so read their guidance before you apply. The free scan checks these against your own business.

  • Business based in England
  • Farming, forestry or land management
  • You own or manage at least 1 hectare of land
Read the full rules at the official source

How to apply, in brief

The landowner or manager (or an authorised agent) completes the EWCO application and declaration forms and emails them to the Forestry Commission, working with a local Woodland Officer.

  1. 1Check your land and its sensitivity
  2. 2Register on the Rural Payments service
  3. 3Contact your local Woodland Officer
  4. 4Plan the woodland and complete the forms
  5. 5Submit by 31 May for the next planting season

How long a decision takes: 3 to 5 months from a complete application; aim of 12 weeks on the Woodland Creation Fast Track

The full guide, with what to do at each step, the official link for it and a draft to work from, is part of the £19.95 report.

Common questions

Is England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) open for applications?
Yes. It is open for applications, with no fixed deadline.
How much is England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) worth?
There is no single published figure: what you get depends on your project and the funder's assessment. It is a grant.
Who runs England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO), and where is it available?
Forestry Commission (funded through the Defra Trees Programme) runs it. It is available in England.
How do I apply for England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO)?
The landowner or manager (or an authorised agent) completes the EWCO application and declaration forms and emails them to the Forestry Commission, working with a local Woodland Officer.

Does your business qualify?

Eligibility rules are where schemes get fiddly. Gov Owed checks your business against England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) — and every other UK scheme we track — in about two minutes, free. The £19.95 report then explains exactly why you qualify, drafts your answers and walks you through the real application step by step.

Check my business

No sign-up to scan · keep 100% of anything you win · re-runs free for 12 months

Related schemes

AWS Activate (cloud credits)

Amazon Web Services

up to £158,000

BFI UK Global Screen Fund — Video Game Release

BFI (British Film Institute) / DCMS

up to £50,000

Big Issue Invest — Impact Loans England

Big Issue Invest

up to £400,000

Google Ad Grants (nonprofits)

Google for Nonprofits

up to £94,800
Browse all schemes

Information, not financial advice; eligibility is decided by the funder. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Schemes change — confirm details on the official page before applying.