Variety is the spice of life: CLA South East advisers review the year

CLA South East rural adviser Lucy Charman looks back on a busy year...

Variety is the spice of life… or so they tell me and 2024 has certainly delivered variety. When the South East advice team are not attending events, shows, technical seminars, representing member interests on steering groups, engagement sessions, meetings, or contributing towards policy discussions, the day job, and arguably the most important part of our job, is advising members.

2024 has seen huge changes in the political landscape, the agricultural transition continues to evolve and the 2023/24 growing season was one of the most challenging on record, which combined to create a feeling of instability for many landowners and increased the need for advice.

Looking back through our advice cases this year, Rosie Salt-Crockford and I were keen to give an insight into the diversity of queries we see here in the South East region. The list below doesn’t even reflect the true scale of the cases that have come to us, as any specialist tax, legal and policy cases are dealt with by our colleagues in London, but hopefully it offers some insight into the topics our members have contacted us about over the last year:

• APR/BPR and the Chancellor's autumn Budget.
• Business rates and council tax queries on annexes and short term holiday lets
• Business rates on vineyards and buildings that have been demolished/changed use/ been combined or separated into multiple units etc.
• Planning new developments, housing, rural workers, appeals, regularising existing development – certificates of lawfulness, access, permitted development, local plans and houseboat permissions
• Utilities – power, water, solar, wind turbines, battery storage, telecoms- wayleaves, supplier issues, contracts,
• Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) – from Rampion2, Gatwick airport’s planned expansion, and Sealink to the Solent CO2 pipeline and more
• Diversification advice - wedding venues, pumpkin enterprises, farm produce vending machines, vineyards, commercial units, letting grazing, equestrian enterprises, campsites, clay shooting, dog walking paddocks and goat rearing.
• Species advice - beaver re-introductions, pine marten re-introductions, deer and squirrel management plans, mink/otter fish damage
• Harmful weeds, invasive species - Himalayan balsam, ragwort and Japanese knotweed
• Access - footpath diversions, rights of way management, Section 31 deposits and closing permissive paths alongside claims for land to be classed as an ‘asset of community value’.
• SFI, Mid tier and Higher tier applications, delinked payments, entry eligibility, issues, queries and management requirements
• Risk assessments (farm/office/glamping site/farm shop etc) , food hygiene requirements, fire risk assessments, health and safety regulations and rules around red diesel
• Rewilding and natural capital advice including biodiversity net gain (BNG), nutrient neutrality, carbon markets
• Compulsory purchase for water/ gas pipes etc, as well as advice on easements and wayleaves for electrical structures and telecoms and broadband equipment
• Grants – woodland, Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF), Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), diversification grants, vineyards, ELMS, EWCO, tree planting, FIPL, access grants, flood relief
• Land ownership, values, title registrations, boundary disputes, septic tank discharges, ditch clearance responsibility and possible pollution incidents
• Slurry storage policy amends
• Red Tractor concerns and queries
• Grazing licences and agricultural tenancy advice
• Ash dieback, sick oak trees, Scandinavian spruce bark beetle, calculating stacked timber volumes
• Protected landscape management plans, SSSI minimum grazing requirements, SSSI mapping errors
• Signposting – assistance in finding a local expert to act on your behalf – solicitors, land agents, planning professionals, foresters, accountants etc.

From the extensive list above there have been many interesting cases that required further research and internal discussion in order to provide advice to our members.

In general, any case that involves discussion about species reintroduction (beavers and pine martens) or management (like squirrel, mink or deer control) alongside any request for sporting advice peaks my personal interest.

Conversely, any large infrastructure, agricultural tenancy or business planning query seems to bring my colleague Rosie joy. However, with planning enquiries topping the list as the regions most prevalent topic, it is critical to be able to offer detailed planning advice to members for a new application, providing a supporting statement, finding relevant case law or just generally to help navigate obstacles throughout an application journey.

As we know, planning policy is in constant flux. In addition to national policy, building up a detailed knowledge of the South East region's planning landscape takes time, with 66 different planning authorities across the region and 8 different designated landscapes comprising two National Parks and a further six National Landscapes (Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty) this is work that Rosie and I continue to do as and when advice cases allow.

For example, a recent request required research into the planning definition of horticulture and locating relevant case law in order to support a certificate of lawfulness for an agricultural workers dwelling. Moreover, much work has gone into recent responses to local plans and National Landscape management plans in order to ensure we are representing our member’s aims, and protecting landowner rights to diversify or expand their businesses.

Having gone back through 2024’s cases, Rosie and I both agree that we cannot wait to see what questions we get from members in 2025.