Guidance

Assessing woodland condition for a Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier agreement: operations note 69

Published 20 June 2025

Applies to England

Purpose  

This guide aims to help land managers understand how to complete a Woodland Condition Assessment (WCA) by the end of year 1 and again in year 9. This can either be as part of a Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier agreement or as a standalone capital item.

It can also help assess multiple woodland areas over a larger region, using the survey method described in Annex 1. 

This guide is based on the Sylva WCA tool. Find out more about the Sylva WCA tool. 

You do not have to use the Sylva WCA tool to complete a WCA, but if you use a different format, it must follow the same method, scoring system, and include all 15 indicators listed in Annex 1. Assessments that don’t meet these requirements will not be accepted as valid evidence for the Countryside Stewardship (CS) multi-annual agreement.  

Context 

As part of the CS scheme, you can apply for ‘FY7 – Assessing Woodland Condition’. This can be done alongside creating a woodland management plan or as part of a Higher Tier agreement. Your application should include all woodland areas linked to a Higher Tier woodland management plan grant or woodland improvement agreement. 

To receive ongoing payments under a CS Higher Tier agreement (CWD2), you must complete WCA reports by the end of years 1 and 9.

A report done before year 1 can count for that requirement, as long as no woodland management activities have changed the condition since it was completed. 

The information captured during this time will allow comparisons to be carried out, to help identify the impact of woodland support.  

In Sites of Special Scientific Interest, a WCA does not replace Natural England’s official condition assessment.  

All woodland areas on your land must be included in the application for this item. However, for larger sites with separate woodland blocks, it is not expected that every block needs to be surveyed. 

You can apply for ‘FY7 – Assessing Woodland Condition’ twice during a 10-year CS Higher Tier agreement, to meet the survey requirements at the end of Years 1 and 9. 

Mandatory information on the WCA tool  

The preferred way to assess woodland condition is using the Sylva WCA tool. You will need to register the first time you use it. 

Some data fields in the WCA app are optional, but if you are receiving funding for the FY7 item, you must complete the required information where it applies.  

You must include a: 

• Single Business Identifier 
• Higher Tier reference number (if available) 
• woodland management plan number (if available) 

Woodland surveys: specifications for reports and survey plot locations  

The current survey plot* thresholds for a Woodland Condition Assessment are:

• small woodlands less than 30ha where type and age are similar, a minimum of 5 survey plots 
• large woodlands more than 30ha or where there is variation in the woodland, a minimum of 10 survey plots 

*10m radius plots = 0.03ha 

You should plan your survey route ahead of time to make sure it covers the different woodland types on your land.

For woodlands in a CS Higher Tier agreement, the same survey plot locations must be used in both years 1 and 9.

The WCA capital item can be applied for twice during the 10-year agreement. 

Sites with broadleaved/conifer woodland, ASNW, or PAWs

If your land includes broadleaved/conifer woodland, Ancient and Semi-Natural Woodland (ASNW), or Plantations on Ancient Woodland (PAWs), you must carry out separate condition surveys for each area linked to your agreement, using these size thresholds.

To check if you have ASNW or PAWs woodland on your land, use the MAGIC map:

Select map layers: Habitats and Species > Habitats > Woodland. Then select Ancient Woodland – revised completed Counties ’ layers.

This map layer includes the most up-to-date data, currently being updated county by county. It shows ancient woodlands between 0.25 and 2 hectares that were not previously recorded.

Read more about Ancient woodland revised completed counties. 

You do not need to survey every woodland compartment, but the surveys should reflect the different woodland types and features on your land, following the guidance in Annex 1. For example, if your woodland covers 150 hectares, the breakdown might look like this example table:

Woodland type	Area (Ha)	Minimum number of survey plot locations across compartments
Broadleaved/conifer	125	10
ASNW	10	5
PAWs	15	5
Total	150	20

Each WCA report can be named after the type of woodland it covers: 

• test wood – broadleaved/conifer 
• test wood – ASNW 
• test wood – PAWs 

Keep your Woodland Condition Assessments  

You should keep all completed assessments, even if you don’t plan to apply for a woodland management planning grant or improvement payments. If the assessment was funded through Countryside Stewardship, or is being used to support evidence requirements of a CS Higher Tier agreement, the Forestry Commission may ask you to provide a copy. 

To meet the reporting and claim requirements in year 1 of a CS Higher Tier agreement, you can use a condition assessment completed within the last 5 years as evidence. 

Further advice

Find funding for land or farms provides details about capital items and multi-annual options available through Countryside Stewardship grants.  

To apply, visit Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier: get ready to apply. You can also chat to your local Forestry Commission Woodland Officer.

Read the Field Studies Council guidance on WCAs.

Annex 1

Annex 1  - WCA 5 form (pdf version).