Farmers and are being encouraged to apply for woodland creation grants in a new campaign.

Grants are available of more than £10,000 for every hectare of new woodland created.

Both the Forestry Commission (FC) and Defra are promoting the grants and free advice on creating woodlands.

Woodland creation is one of the options that farmers will have as part of England’s new agriculture policy which will reward them for the environmental outcomes they help to deliver alongside being food producers.

The England Trees Action Plan commits to treble tree planting rates by the end of this parliament to at least 7,000 hectares of trees per year in England.

This equates to just 0.08 per cent of the 9.3 million hectares of farmland in England changing to woodland each year by the end of that period.

Through the Forestry Commission’s England Woodland Creation Offer, farmers and landowners will be paid to create new woodland on areas as small as one hectare (and that can be made up of smaller plots) – from small scale planting on marginal or unproductive land to large mixed woodlands.

This offer supports the creation of a range of woodland types and sizes, including along rivers to improve the water environment, through natural colonisation, for sustainable forestry and where their location and design will provide public benefits including greater access to nature.

With this support, converting marginal or unproductive land into new woodland can create additional income streams - without taking good agricultural land out of use.

Importantly, they will be able to transfer to an environmental land management scheme without having to repay the current funding, meaning there’s no need to delay planting trees now.

Tenant farmers can receive this funding if both they and their landlord are content with the tree planting proposals.

Farming minister Victoria Prentis said: “Our new schemes are about supporting the choices that individual farmers and landowners make for their own holdings.

"These grants are available to help farmers and landowners grow and manage more trees as a profitable part of their overall business model, and I would encourage them to look at that support where they feel that it is the right choice for their business.”

Forestry Commission Chief Executive, Richard Stanford, said: “Trees and woodland play a vital role in protecting the planet and help mitigate the increasing threat of climate change and biodiversity loss.

"Creating woods can be an excellent way to diversify farms, especially on marginal land – and there are exciting opportunities to grow and manage trees in a way that maximises the benefits they provide for climate, nature, people and the economy."