Guidance

How to make a full application

Updated 14 March 2024

Applies to England

How to make a full  application

Before you fill in the full application forms, read the:

• Calf Housing for Health and Welfare grant round 1: guidance for applicants
• email inviting you to submit a full application - this tells you what information you need for your full application
• Supporting documents checklist (at the end of this guidance document) to ensure you have all necessary information and documents to hand.

Check your records on the Rural Payments service

Make sure that your business is registered with the Rural Payments service and has both a Single Business Identifier (SBI) number, and a County Parish Holding (CPH) number (for your registered cattle holding location). Your application cannot be processed without these.

Your application details must match your records on the Rural Payments service. If they do not, follow the guidance to update your records: https://www.gov.uk/claim-rural-payments.

If you are an agent submitting the application on behalf of a customer, you should make sure that you have the correct permissions to use the Rural Payments service.

Make your full application

This stage can only be completed after the successful completion of the ambient environment stage, and you have been invited to submit a full application.

You will need to fill in 2 forms to make a full application:

• a Microsoft Excel appendix spreadsheet
• a Microsoft Word full application form.

Only fill in the application form and the appendix spreadsheet provided by RPA, as we cannot accept information in any other format. You should complete the appendix first, as the full application form entries support the appendix declarations.

Complete all the questions on each form and give full and clear answers to free text questions.

When to apply

You can apply at any time before midnight on 30 April 2025.

Do not submit your application before you have all the required information. RPA cannot process an incomplete application.

RPA will reject any application that misses the published deadline, and has the right to change the deadline. Check the details on the Farming Transformation Fund page.

You must sign your Grant Funding Agreement (GFA) before you start your project. This means before placing any orders for goods or services with your suppliers, and before starting any project works on site.

Submit your application

When you receive confirmation that your proposed project has passed the ambient environment assessment stage, you can complete your full application form and appendix and prepare any supporting documents.

Save your completed application form as a Microsoft Word document, and your appendix spreadsheet as a Microsoft Excel document in the .xlsx format. If you do not have Microsoft Excel you can use free Open Office software to complete the Appendix, as long as you save it in the Microsoft Excel (.xlsx) format.

To do this:

• select ‘Save as’ when saving the appendix spreadsheet - the ‘Save as’ box will open
• select the format for the document in the ‘Save as type’ box - select the format type – Excel Workbook (.xlsx)
• click ‘Save’
• a dialog box may open asking you to ‘Confirm file format’ - if that happens, select ‘Confirm’.

Attach the documents to an email and send it from the email address you give us in Section 1 of the application form.

Email all completed forms to FTF@rpa.gov.uk.

If an agent or consultant sends the form for you, they must copy you into the email using the email address you give us in Section 1.

The email address(es) used to submit the application must match with those held in the Rural Payments service, with permission to make legal changes or full permissions for the applicant business.

Permissions in the Rural Payments service

You can give other people access to your business in the Rural Payments service. You must have ‘Full permissions’ and the other person must be registered to give them access to your business details on the Rural Payments service. This is linked to the CRN number.

If you are an agent applying on behalf of a customer, or you are not the customer registered on Rural Payments, you must have permission to ‘Make legal changes’ or have ‘Full permissions’ for the business in Rural Payments.

You can find guidance on updating your details at Rural Payments service.

Sending supporting documents

Attach all supporting documents to the email you send with your application forms. Do not send them by post or save your documents in online storage systems with links to access them.

Emails should be a maximum of 20 MB. You may need to send several smaller emails. If you do, number each email, for example ‘Project reference: application 1 of 3’. Your project reference number is on the email we sent to you inviting you to submit a full application.

If you have any problems completing or sending the full application forms, contact our helpline on 03000 200 301 and select the option for the Farming Transformation Fund.

How to fill in the application appendix spreadsheet

For a full application, you must complete both the application form and an appendix spreadsheet. Complete the appendix first, to inform your entries on the full application form.

You need to fill in 5 tabs on the spreadsheet. These are:

• A - Specifications
• B - Theme details
• C - Costs and suppliers
• D - Funding and claims
• E - Outputs.

Fill in each tab in the order shown above, as some of the information you fill in will feed into and create data in other tabs.

There is also another tab, F Printable Spec, which self-populates from your entries on the other tabs and summarises all the specification data in one place. This information can be printed off or saved as a pdf, which you can give to your suppliers.  

If your application is for more than one building, you will need to complete a separate appendix for each building. Please contact FTF@rpa.gov.uk for guidance on how to do this.

Tab A – Specifications

This tab confirms the Calf Housing for Health and Welfare (CHHW) grant minimum specification requirements and the details of your Ambient Environment Location and Design (AELD) form declarations.

There are 3 columns; Response (column E), Evidence/plans (column G) and Building specifications/quotes (column I).

A response is needed in column E for all questions and where indicated, also complete columns G and I to indicate where the items can be found on plans and quotes.

Part A - Application details: enter the applicant and project details into the Response (column E) box.

Part B – Compliance with the minimum specification: select, as appropriate, from the drop-down ‘Yes/No’ options to confirm compliance.

Part C – Ambient environment specifications: select from the drop-down options to indicate the type of site and housing for the project. The type of housing chosen will auto select the relevant sub-section below for you to complete. Sections that do not need to be completed will remain blank.

Select from the drop-down ‘Yes/No’ options in column E to indicate compliance with the listed elements of the housing type, and in column G, confirm where this information can be found in the supporting documents.

Complete the remaining 3 questions in Part C.

Part D - Please read the Declaration. Submission of the appendix confirms your understanding and agreement with the Declaration, Important information, and Terms and Conditions.

Tab B - Theme details

We will use the information you enter on this tab to help us assess how well the project meets the Calf Housing for Health and Welfare (CHHW) theme priorities.

Calf Numbers - existing:  Tell us about your existing (pre-project) annual calf housing schedule, the numbers involved, and the pattern:

• 1a - Start of calving year: enter day/month, for example 01 March

• 1b - Enter values (number) in the appropriate boxes to illustrate your usual (pre-project) calf numbers, by weight category, on a monthly basis. Any newborn calves that are kept on the holding should be included in the <100kg category

• 1c - Individual housing: enter ‘Yes’ in the appropriate box, to confirm how long your calves are housed individually.

Calf Numbers - Future - to be housed in new or refurbished building:  Tell us about your forecast (post-project) calf housing schedule in the grant-funded building(s), and the numbers involved:

• 2a - Start of calving year: enter day/month, for example 01 March

• 2b - Enter a value (number) in the appropriate box, to illustrate your expected future calf numbers, by weight category, on a monthly basis

• 2c - Group size: enter a value (number) for the expected average group size in your post-project calf housing.

All Calves: Future housing: existing and new/refurbished: Tell us about the expected post-project change to your housing pattern:

• 3a - Enter a value (% number) in the relevant box. This should illustrate your expected post-project split of calves housed between your existing housing and the new post-project grant-funded facilities.

• 3b - Using the Yes/No drop-down options for each time period, confirm whether calves in each housing band will be housed individually.

Future Calf Housing Building Areas: Tell us about specific elements of the new housing. This will allow us to check that you have sufficient unobstructed space for the calves that you are intending to house.

• 4a - Select an item (for example, calf pen or feed storage) from the list of individual elements shown. Enter the width and length values in metres to confirm the size of the proposed area. Entries will be automatically totalled below, in table 4b. You also need to identify the area(s) against a specific reference on the accompanying floor plans.

• 4c - Moisture control - select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ from the drop down options, to confirm how moisture will be controlled by the project. If ‘Yes’, complete the additional details requested.

• 4d - Sick Calves - select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ from the drop down options, to confirm the provision for sick calves provided by the project. If ‘Yes’, complete the additional details requested.

Environment: Tell us the positive impact(s) the project will have on the environment. This means both beneficial outcomes and any mitigated negative impacts.

• 5a - Building - select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ from the drop down options, to confirm if the building will incorporate the use of solar panels and/or the collection of rainwater. If ‘Yes’, complete the additional details requested.

• 5b - Building materials - select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ from the drop down options, to confirm if any of the construction elements will be used for the project. If ‘Yes’, complete the additional details requested.

You will also need to provide the evidence listed below to support and validate your declaration(s).

Declared Benefit	Example eligible items	Evidence required
Roof top solar PV systems	PV panels	Identified and itemised in Supplier quote
Rainwater capture and storage system	Tanks, pumps, pipework, expansion vessels etc	Identified and itemised in Supplier quote
Use of low carbon concrete	Alternatives to ordinary portland cement which have higher embodied CO2: - lower carbon aggregates, such as Ground Granulated Blast-furnace Slag (GGBS), modified lignin sulfonate (MLS), fly ash, silica fume and pozzolona - portland limestone cements - low-cement-concrete with a cement content of <10%	Identified and itemised in Supplier quote
Use of steel replacement products	- fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) - resin piling - carbon fibre	Identified and itemised in Supplier quote
Use of sustainably sourced timber	Timber certified by Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification) (PEFC), Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), or the Canadian Standards Association (CSA).	Identified and itemised in Supplier quote
Re-use of materials already on-site	Wooden cladding, fencing, pen dividers etc	Volumetrics and photographs supplied at time of application, and also at time of claim (covering installation of same items)
Use of re-used or second-hand materials from off-site	As above	As above or, where purchased but not grant funded, identified and itemised in a signed Supply document
Use of recycled materials	Materials with a recycled content of >40%	Identified and itemised in Supplier quote

You will also need to provide similar evidence at any grant claim request stage. Supplier invoices should be as clearly detailed and itemised as the quotes used for this application.

Innovation: This is where you detail how much innovation the project will bring to your business:

• 6a - New technology and automation - enter a number to confirm how many of each type of new technology impacts listed will be enabled by the project.

  For example, if the project will only introduce a single new monitoring capacity, but with no automatic response, enter 1 against the first line and 0 for the other two lines.

• 6b - New techniques - enter a number to confirm how many of each type of new techniques listed will be enabled by the project.

  For example, if the project will enable two new techniques to improve stockperson capacity, enter 2 against the first line and 0 for the other two lines.

• 6c - Collaboration - This is where you can tell us if, and how, you will build new or improve existing partnerships . For example, some projects will provide benefits to another partner business, a collaborator, or a specific supplier (these will need to be named and listed at section 9.4 of the Full Application form).

  Enter ‘0’ if the listed outcome does not apply to the project.

After completing this tab, provide the supporting detail in the full application form, at section 9.

Tab C – Costs and suppliers

You need to fill in:

• item to be funded (column B)
• the supplier’s name
• the quoted amount (both including and excluding VAT)
• the supplier’s VAT and Companies House numbers (if registered).

Provide these details for each supplier, starting with your preferred supplier and moving to the right to fill in the columns for the second and third suppliers.

Show all costs that are included in your grant application. It may be helpful to group similar costs from each supplier under one heading. For example, all fixtures and fittings, or all housing of a similar type, as detailed and itemised on each quote.

A quote is a fixed price for the item and the price charged by the supplier cannot increase.  If suppliers are not prepared to provide quotes, you can get estimates from them instead. Note that the cost of the item can change if you are given an estimate.  The guidance for estimates is the same as for quotes.

Approved grants are based on the costs provided at the time of full application. Subsequent increases will not be covered by grant increases.

Providing quotes

All the quotes supplied must include sufficient detailed and itemised information. This is to provide assurance that the proposed calf housing is being built to the CHHW minimum specification, including the specifications identified and declared at the ambient environment stage. If any of the above elements, or other features scored at the online stage, are not supported by details in the quotes, they will be discounted and will impact and reduce your project’s score.

You need to provide the required number of quotes, tenders or references to catalogue listings, as detailed in the table below, for all items included in your application to show how you will get best value for it.

Value of items or service	How to show value for money
Less than £5,000	1 quote, or reference to 1 catalogue listing (including online suppliers)
£5,000 - £50,000	3 quotes, or references to 3 catalogue listings (including online suppliers)
More than £50,000	3 quotes, or 3 formal competitive tenders* where required

*Formal competitive tenders are viewed as quotes that suppliers put together within an identified timeframe and follow a detailed and itemised specification provided by the applicant.

You should be able to provide the necessary 3 quotes from different suppliers. You can source these from the UK or internationally.

If you have not provided the required number of quotes, references to catalogue listings or tenders for any item included in your project costs, you must explain why at Q5.8 on the full application word document.

All quotes or tenders must:

• include a detailed and itemised breakdown of costs, and must exactly match with the entries in the Costs and suppliers tab of the Appendix
• clearly identify each element of the calf-housing minimum specification, ambient environment, and any other declared elements being grant-funded by the project
• come from different, independent suppliers who are not linked to each other or to your business through shared ownership or control
• include the supplier’s business name, address (including postcode) and telephone number
• be sourced independently by you or your agent - a supplier cannot source quotes from other suppliers on your behalf
• be directly comparable with each other in terms of quality, size, quantity, units and specification for every item
• be dated and obtained within the last 9 months
• be addressed to the applicant business or agent (containing the business name, business or project address, if different, and postcode) - if the quote is addressed to your agent, it must clearly reference the project and its location.

If a quote is emailed to you from a supplier as an attachment, you should also send the original covering email showing time, date, and who sent it.

Any references to a catalogue listing must be sent as screen shots and they must include the:

• date on which it was printed or copied
• item description and the price
• name of the company or catalogue
• page number or webpage.

All quotes, catalogue listings and tenders must be genuine and sourced from genuine suppliers who are actively trading. Checks will be carried out to make sure that quotes, catalogue listings and tenders submitted to support an application have not been made up or changed in any way.

We will also check that there has been no collusion between suppliers, or between applicants and their agent or suppliers, in relation to supplying supporting quotes or tenders. Any attempt made to provide false or misleading information to us could lead to prosecution.

If the supplier is VAT registered and will be charging VAT, you need to provide the supplier’s VAT number, if it is not on the quote. If the supplier is a Limited company, you must provide the company registration number, if it’s not on the quote.

We check value for money by comparing all quotes in £ sterling. If you’re providing quotes in a different currency you will need to convert these to £ sterling in your application. You can use HMRC exchange rates for the conversion. If you are converting from other currency to £ sterling, please be aware that any fees including non-sterling transaction fees are not eligible for grant funding. You will need to exclude these from the value being converted.

If you are proposing to use a formal tendering process, you must contact us to discuss this. We will make sure this is appropriate for your project and timescales. You need to send copies of the email(s) showing you contacted us about using a formal tendering process and it was agreed that you could.

If the quotes or tenders do not meet the requirements you will need to submit revised quotes or tenders that do, or we may remove the item from consideration.

In addition, if the quotes supplied do not clearly detail and confirm that the proposed calf housing is being built to the CHHW minimum specification, and with the specifications identified at the ambient environment stage, your application will be ineligible for support. Other features that formed part of the scoring criteria at the online stage, but which are not supported by details in the quotes, will not be credited and will reduce your project’s score.

Best value quote

We want applicants to use the best value quote – that means getting the best value on the market by using the cheapest supplier for each project item. Where a more expensive quote has been selected as the preferred supplier, we will base any grant on the value of the cheapest quote only. You can still use a more expensive supplier, but you will need to fund the difference in cost.

Tab D – Funding and claims

Much of the information in this tab will be copied across automatically from the details you have filled in on tab C.

Firstly, confirm if you are including irrecoverable VAT in your project costs, to ensure the correct costs are transferred from tab C: enter Y or N into the box on line 4.

Then confirm the cost category of the grant-funded item, using the drop-down options in column B, to indicate either Housing or Solar.

Column F (grant rate %) will auto-populate according to the cost category: either a maximum of 40% (housing) or maximum of 25% (solar). You can reduce the requested grant rate, but all items in each category must use the same rate.

Once you enter the grant rate, the total grant amount requested will be shown in column G.

When the grant rate and grant amounts are complete, check the project cost summary table at lines 47 - 53 to make sure all details are correct.

Any declared non-grant funded expenditure will also be copied from the table you filled in on tab C.

Then fill in the claims table at the right of the tab: a proposed project start date (date on which you intend to start the project by placing orders with suppliers, and eligible expenditure is incurred) in cell L4, and your grant request amounts (£s) in columns I, K, and M. You can give up to 3 claim dates on line 7 (overtype the date in red) and put the eligible cost that you want to include in each claim for every item.

When setting your claim dates, think about when your costs will occur and when the invoice(s) will be paid in full. You do not have to have 3 claims; you can submit just 1 or 2. Some item costs may be spread out, so you may receive interim invoices as the works are completed. In such cases you may want to submit 2 or 3 claims against the same item.

Space multiple claims at least three months apart, to allow time for any project slippage and our processing and payment requirements. We may have to amend claim dates that are too close together.

The grant amount will be shown and the totals for each claim will be calculated at the bottom of the table.

As you allocate each item of expenditure to a claim, the figure in column O to the right of the claims table will show £0.00 (in green).

Expenditure remaining to be allocated to claims will be shown in red.

For most costs it is likely that you’ll receive one invoice and will claim for the full cost after the item has been received, installed, and paid for in full.

We do not normally pay the final grant payment until the item is fully installed and operational. However, there may be some instances where a large deposit must be paid at the point of ordering. In such cases you can claim up to 40% of the value of the item, and it should be clearly set out in your claim schedule.

Check that you’ve filled in the costs and claims table and made sure that the project cost summary is correct. Scroll down to check that the claim table at the bottom of the tab is also correct. This should show when you plan to submit each claim, the total expenditure included in each claim and the grant amount you intend to claim.

If you have more than 1 claim, the final claim must be at least 15% of the total grant amount being requested.

Tab E – Outputs

The ‘Outputs’ table automatically populates from the details you have entered in Tab B Theme details:

These outputs are:

• new technology introduced
• new techniques/skills enabled
• new collaborations or partnerships agreed
• environmental benefits achieved
• building materials that have a minimised environmental impact.

Expected outputs means what will happen by the end of year one after the project has been delivered and completed. The outputs will be entered as conditions of your grant in any Grant Funding Agreement (GFA).

These outputs are in addition to the improved calf health and welfare benefits that your project is expected to deliver.

If you are successful with your grant application, you should keep baseline and post-project records relating to calf illness, vaccinations and mortalities, and records of temperature and humidity data for the grant-funded housing.

We will provide you with further guidance regarding data monitoring and reporting with your GFA.

Tab F – Printable Spec

This tab self-populates and can be printed off (or saved as a PDF) for your own use.

How to fill in the full application form

Fill in every section on the form unless the instructions say you can either type ‘N/A’ or move to the next question.

Section 1. Applicant details

Please provide details of the business applying for the grant. This should be the same business as you declared on the stage 1 Online Application.

If you’re filling in this form on behalf of a business or organisation where you are not the sole owner, a partner, or a director, you should be an authorised agent (including an employee) with delegated authority registered on the Rural Payments system.

Question 1.1:Enter the 6 digit project reference, as detailed at the top of your ‘invitation to submit a full application’ email.

Question 1.2:Tell us the full legal name of your business or organisation.

This is the name used on your annual financial accounts and your business bank account. It should also be the name of the business or organisation that is registered with us on the Rural Payments service.

Question 1.3: Enter your 9 digit SBI number.

You must make sure that the SBI number and business details registered with us on the Rural Payments service match with the SBI number, applicant business name, applicant name, applicant email address, address and postcode, entered on the application form. If they do not, we won’t be able to process your application.

Question 1.3a: Enter your 9 digit CPH number.

This should be the main County Parish Holding number for the CTS-registered cattle holding on which your project building will be based.

Question 1.4: Enter the full address of the applicant business. If the organisation has more than 1 address, it should be the address that all postal correspondence should be sent to.

Question 1.5: Enter your title, first name and surname. The applicant is normally the owner, a director or partner of the applicant business. The applicant’s name on the application form must match with the name registered on the Rural Payments service for the applicant business. The applicant must be someone with permission to ‘make legal changes’ or ‘full permissions’ for the business on the Rural Payments service.

Question 1.5a: Select your answer from the drop-down list.

Question 1.6: Enter the email address to contact you if we have any queries about your application. Please provide an email address that you check regularly as we will use email as our main way of contacting you. This should be your email address and not the one for your agent or manager, which you can give at Section 2.

Question 1.7: Enter your mobile phone number in case we need to speak to you.

Question 1.8: Enter your business phone number.

Question 1.9: We gathered some information from you when you completed the online checker. Please review the answers you gave about the legal status of the business, business activity and business name. This will be recorded in the email you received after submitting your details. 

If you select ‘No’ from the drop-down list to this question, you’re confirming that the answers you gave to all these questions have not changed.

If you select ‘Yes’ from the drop-down list to this question, you are confirming that 1 or more of the answers you gave has changed or is incorrect.

Question 1.9a: If your answer at 1.9 is ‘yes’, please tell us of the changes to the applicant business details since you completed the online checker. The comments boxes throughout the form will expand as you write your answer. 

If there have been significant or numerous changes to any of the applicant business details, which have not already been discussed and agreed with your RPA contact, your project may no longer be eligible to proceed.

Question 1.10: To understand the structure and size of the business applying, we need to know if your business is linked to other businesses.

Businesses are considered as linked when:

• one business holds a majority of the shareholders’ or members’ voting rights in another business
• one business is entitled to appoint or remove a majority of the administrative, management or supervisory body of another
• a contract between the business, or a provision in the memorandum or articles of association of one of the businesses, enables one to exercise a material influence over the other
• one business is able, by agreement, to exercise sole control over a majority of shareholders’ or members’ voting rights in another.

Businesses can also be linked through ownership by individuals, such as partners or through shareholding. Where this type of ownership is through one or more individuals who could work together, the enterprises involved may be considered as linked if they operate on the same or adjacent markets. Family links may be enough to conclude that individuals are working together.

If you are unsure if there is a link between the applicant business and any others, you should call our helpline on 03000 200 301 and select the option for the Farming Transformation Fund.

Question 1.10a: If your answer at 1.10 is ‘yes’, please tell us the name of any linked businesses.

You must send us the latest financial accounts for all linked businesses. If you are part of a group structure (a parent or subsidiary company) you must also provide consolidated group accounts.

Question 1.11: Using the drop-down box, tell us if your business/organisation has any related or linked businesses in Northern Ireland. Funding from this grant must solely be used for the purposes of England business operations. Monies from this grant cannot be used to cross-subsidise any related, linked, parent, subsidiary, partnership, joint venture businesses or operations based in Northern Ireland.

Question 1.11a: If your answer at 1.11 is ‘yes’, please provide the details of the businesses or operations.

Question 1.12: Complete the drop-down boxes to provide information on the business principals, selecting either ‘yes’ or ‘no’ (business principals means any business owner, partner or director). If you answer ‘no’ to all 4 questions, go to Section 2.

Question 1.12a: If your answer at 1.12 is ‘yes’, enter additional details. This won’t automatically exclude you from receiving grant funding.

Question 1.13: Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ from the drop-down options to declare whether you have provided evidence that you have discussed this project with a registered vet before submitting this application.

You will need to submit a letter with this application to support any ‘Yes’ declaration. The letter must meet the following criteria:

• Be addressed to the applicant
• Show a date of issue
• Reference this specific project
• Provide a clear opinion on the health and welfare merits of the project
• Reference any new techniques, as listed in Tab B Theme Details section 6b, of the appendix
• Business name, contact details, and registered number of the vet.

If you have not discussed the project in this application with a registered vet, your application will not be able to progress and will be withdrawn.

Section 2. Agent details

Question 2.1: Use the drop-down box to tell us if you have used an external agent, consultant, or business manager to help complete your application. If ‘no’, go to Section 3.

Questions 2.2 - 2.7: Provide the requested contact details (if applicable).

Your agent must have permission to ‘Make legal changes’ or ‘Full permissions’ for the applicant business as detailed on the Rural Payments service.

Section 3. Business details

Question 3.1:  Select one of the options that best represents the legal status of the business or organisation.

Question 3.2: Select the best fit for your main business activity from the drop-down list. Only cattle farmers, including calf-rearers, are eligible to apply for this grant.

Question 3.3: Select an answer from the drop-down list. Only farmers with 11 or more cattle are eligible to apply for this grant.

Question 3.4: Select an answer from the drop-down list. This grant is only for existing commercial livestock rearing businesses and therefore new farm businesses, or existing non-livestock farms, are not eligible to apply.

Question 3.5: Enter the Companies House, VAT registration and Registered Charity numbers of the applicant business. Select ‘N/A’  if they do not apply to your business.

Section 4. Project overview

Question 4.1: Enter the name of your project. This should be exactly the same as the project name you gave in the online application, and on the confirmation email you received. Your full application should be for the same project as the one you outlined in your stage 1 online application.

This project name will be included in correspondence and in any publicity.

Question 4.2:  If the project is at a different place to the address you gave at question 1.4, please give the full address details here, including the postcode. If you do not know the exact postcode for the land where your project is located, please provide the postcode for the nearest address, and explain this in the application form.

We understand that some projects may have multiple locations and addresses. Provide the details of all the locations of the project activity. You may find it helpful to identify the project location(s) on a map and submit this with your application.

Please note, this grant is only for project activity in England.

Question 4.3: Tell us about the proposed housing, why you chose this option and how it fits in with your cattle farming activities. For example, whether it’s adapting existing buildings or creating new buildings, and whether you will be rehousing all your calves into the new housing, only housing limited ages, or utilising the building for other purposes when it is not required for calves.

The project you are applying for must be the same as the one you described in the online checker.  If there have been minor changes to the project, you can tell us about these at question 5.11. 

Try to use no more than 200 words in your answer.

Question 4.4:  If you have more than one CHHW application in progress provide full details, including each project reference number.

Please tell us whether each project is fully independent or relies on any of the other applications being successful as well.

Section 5. Project costs, funding, and quotes

Fill in tab C ‘Costs & suppliers’ and tab D ‘Funding & claims’ in the appendix spreadsheet (see guidance below) before answering these questions.

Use the figures from the Project cost summary table in tab D to fill in this section.

Make sure the figures are the same on the full application (Word) form and the appendix (Excel) spreadsheet.

Question 5.1: Enter the total project cost in £ (this should be to 2 decimal places, for example, £200,000.00). This is the total eligible expenditure (costs) that you are applying for grant funding and should not include any other costs that you have identified as ‘non-grant funded expenditure’ at question 5.4. This total should match with the appendix entry at line 34/column E of tab D ‘Funding and claims’.

This should be the total net cost unless your business is unable to reclaim full VAT and you want to include VAT in your grant request. For further guidance on VAT, see question 5.7.

Question 5.1a: Please split the total entered at 5.1 (above) between building related costs and solar related costs.

Question 5.2: Tell us how much grant you are applying for in £ (this should be to 2 decimal places, for example, £65,000.00).

The minimum grant you can apply for is £15,000 per applicant business (40% of minimum eligible project expenditure of £37,500). The maximum grant is £500,000 per applicant business.

The minimum grant threshold of £15,000 applies to housing costs only. Solar costs are not included within this amount.

Question 5.3: Enter the total amount of private match funding required for the project in £ (grant funded expenditure only).

The maximum grant, or public money, you can apply for is 40% of the eligible costs of your project. You need to fund the remaining project costs with private money, such as business savings, a bank loan or overdraft.

You cannot use public money (such as other grant funding from government or local authorities) as your match funding.

Question 5.4: Enter the cost of any non-grant funded expenditure in £. These are costs that you are not applying for grant funding for but are still required as part of your project. For example, moveable items not in the minimum design specification, such as buckets.

Question 5.5: Tell us the source of your private funding. This might be from own business funds, a bank loan, an overdraft, a personal loan from family or friends, a director’s loan, own savings, or a combination.

Use the drop down yes/no boxes to indicate the sources of all funding you’ve secured or have conditional agreement for (for example, subject to the grant being awarded for the project). If you select ‘other’ please tell us about the funding source in the box below.

You need to provide evidence of the funding with your application. This could be an email, letter, or copy of a commercial loan agreement, which needs to show:

• where the funding is coming from (a named person or organisation)
• how much the funding is for (the amount is enough to fund the project)
• who the funding is being offered to
• the date of the offer.

If you are providing funding from other sources, such as own savings, personal loans from family or friends, director’s loans, or cash reserves within the business, you also need to be able to show how much and where it is coming from. For example, a bank or building society statement that shows the funds are available to the business. If the funding for the project is part of a larger mortgage or loan, please explain how you will be able to make use of this facility and show that there are enough funds available for the project.

If you buy an item for the project using lease or hire purchase, you must own the item outright before you can claim any money towards it. This means that before you claim any grant you need to have paid all the instalments and can show that you fully own it.

Question 5.6: Grant funding is paid in arrears at agreed stages. You can make a maximum of 3 claims over the course of the project.

Explain how you will make sure there is enough funding in place to pay the project costs in full before each grant claim is submitted, allowing time for claims to be processed and paid. For example, if there is headroom within your overdraft or normal business cash flow.

Question 5.7: Where VAT can be recovered from HMRC, it should not be included in your project costs. Please explain here if you have included VAT in your project costs and why it is not recoverable. This would normally be if your business is not VAT registered.

If you are not able to recover VAT, you will need to provide a letter from a professionally qualified independent accountant to confirm this is the case.

A professionally qualified accountant is defined as a member of:

• Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), or the Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies (CCAB) constituent bodies
• Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW)
• Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
• Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA)
• Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS)
• Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI).

Use the table below to help you decide whether you can include VAT in your project costs or not.

VAT status table

Status	Outcome
You are registered for VAT and making regular returns of VAT to HMRC	You will not be able to include VAT in your project costs or grant request because it is recoverable in full on VAT returns
You are not registered for VAT because your business is below the threshold for supplies	You will be able to include VAT in your project costs and grant request provided this status can be verified by RPA with your full application
You are not registered for VAT because you opted to join the Agricultural flat rate scheme instead	You will not be able to include VAT in your project costs or grant request because the flat rate scheme you have chosen to join is a simplification instead of registering for VAT. The terms of the scheme mean that you receive compensation for not being able to recover VAT paid by your business by retaining a Flat Rate Addition (FRA) added to sales invoices in respect of supplies made to VAT registered customers
You are registered for VAT but you have also opted to join a flat rate scheme	You will not be able to include VAT in your project costs or grant request because the flat rate scheme you have chosen to join is a simplification which compensates you for not being able to reclaim input VAT. In addition, you are able to reclaim input VAT on certain capital assets costing over £2,000 through your VAT returns
You are registered for VAT and making exempt supplies meaning that not all VAT paid can be recovered on returns of VAT to HMRC	You will not be able to include VAT in your project costs or grant request because at the time of application you will only be able to estimate the non-recoverable VAT. The final position will only be known after the grant has been paid and your project is complete

Question 5.8: You need to provide the required number of quotes, tenders or references to catalogue listings for all items included in your application. This is fully detailed in the Appendix Tab C entry above, to show how you will get best value for it.

If you have not provided the required number of quotes, references to catalogue listings or tenders for any item included in your project costs, you must explain why. If there are no other suppliers available, either nationally or globally, you must provide written evidence (such as emails or letters, clearly showing business identities) of ‘declines’ from at least three potential suppliers that you have approached.

Questions 5.9 and 5.9a: Select ‘yes’ or ‘no’ as your answer from the drop-down option to confirm if you or your business is connected in any way or has an association with any of the businesses providing quotes for the project items.

If you answer ‘yes’, identify the suppliers and explain the connection. This includes links through ownership as set out at question 1.11 or any other association, for example if the supplier business is owned by a family member or by an employee of the applicant business.

It is important that you declare this to us. If you do not tell us about an association with a supplier, we may refuse funding.

Questions 5.10 and 5.10a: Select ‘yes’ or ‘no’ as your answer from the drop-down option to tell us if you plan to purchase any second-hand items for the project. If you answer ‘yes’, provide details of the project items that you plan to purchase and why you want to do this.

When you request quotes for a second-hand item, you’ll need to ask the supplier to confirm the following points (provide a copy of the email or letter with your application):

• detail of the origin of the item and, if possible, confirmation that during the previous 7 years the item has not been purchased with public funding - if you cannot get this confirmation from the supplier, you should make your own enquiries and provide us with a declaration to confirm that, to the best of your knowledge, the item has not previously been grant-funded.

• that the item meets health and safety legislation
• that the item doesn’t cost more than the market value for new equipment
• that the item is operational and fit for the purpose of the project as described by you to them when you get the quote.

Confirm that the item specification is equal to or better than a new comparable version, that it meets the requirements of the project, and that it is expected to last for the duration of any grant agreement that might be offered to you.

Confirm that the description given to the supplier was consistent with the purpose for the project as set out in your application (supply the email you send to all potential suppliers asking them to provide a quote that sets out what you want to use the item for).

If you cannot obtain the supplier confirmation with the quote, explain why. You will also need to fully explain how you know the item will meet the criteria in the declaration if the supplier will not provide it. If you do not provide acceptable alternative evidence (such as photographs, receipts, extant guarantees, independent expert statements) we may not be able to accept the quote.

If your second-hand item is no longer available at the time we approve your application, you can make a request to use a different supplier. You will need to provide the confirmation from that supplier as set out above with the new quote.

You do not need to get all 3 quotes for second-hand items. You can submit 1 quote for the second-hand item and 2 further quotes for new items if the item details are similar and the cost of the second-hand item is cheaper than the cost of a new item. Where the item cost is below £5,000 you will need to provide a further quote for a new item which is to the same specification.

Questions 5.11 and 5.11a: Review the answers you submitted to the online checker (we sent you a confirmation email including your answers).

Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ from the drop-down options to answer if the project details or its location have changed since you completed the online checker.

• If you select ‘No’, you are confirming that all the answers you gave in the online checker are correct and unchanged

• If you select ‘Yes’, you’re confirming that 1 or more of the answers you gave to the online checker was incorrect or has changed.

Use the space provided in the application form (at 5.11a) to inform us of what these changes are, and why they have occurred. For example, changes due to developing your business plan.

Do not include changes to meet an AELD condition, as these will be covered in specific detail at section 8 of the full application form.

We know that some project details may have changed since you completed the online checker, such as changes to project costs. The overall details of the project described in this application should not be very different from those described in the online checker and the AELD declarations.  Discuss any changes with our Grants Service team before submitting your full application to make sure you can proceed.

If there have been significant changes to the project, and these have not already been discussed and agreed with us, this could affect your application and eligibility for grant funding.

Section 6. Other funding

Question 6.1: Tell us if you or your business have received, or applied for, any other public sector funding for previous calf housing activities or for items intended for this project. Select your answer from the drop-down box. If ‘yes’, please give details in the table.

This includes funding from public sector organisations like your local authority, Big Lottery Fund, levy board funds or other Government grants including from Defra, Natural England, Forestry Commission and Rural Payments Agency.

It also includes EU funding, such as from the following schemes:

• European Social Fund (ESF)
• European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)
• European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD)
• European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF)
• Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE)
• Catchment Sensitive Farming (CSF)
• Forestry Commission
• LEADER.

It is particularly important that you review any national funding applied for or received from the Farming Equipment and Technology Fund (FETF), as this grant includes numerous items with the potential to cross-over with the CHHW grant. For example:

• Ventilation Systems: PPVT, Louvre, Chimney, Fans
• Sensors: temperature, humidity, CO2, Dust, Ammonia
• Water heater
• Mobile pasteuriser/dispenser
• Auto feeder/feed stations
• Heat lamps
• Cameras
• Hanging toys.

Include details of any other grant applications you have made and not yet heard the outcome for. You cannot receive funding on the same grant-funded item from more than one public source.

You do not need to include Single Payment Scheme (SPS) or Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) payments.

Section 7. Permissions and consents

Question 7.1: Confirm if the project will take place on land or in premises that are rented, leased, or tenanted, or if the applicant business owns the land or premises. Select your answer from the drop-down options.

If the applicant business does not own the land or premises, you will need a rental or tenancy agreement with the owner. Provide details of your rental, lease or tenancy agreement including end dates of the current agreement, where applicable.

Many Limited Company farming businesses do not own the land farmed – this is held outside the farming business, for example by a trust or owned by individuals.  Where the Limited Company farming business is the applicant, a rental or tenancy agreement will be required.

You do not need to send us a copy of the whole agreement, but we may ask for it in the future. We will need to see a copy of the sections showing the property address, tenant, landlord, signatures and dates,ks and the tenancy term for fixed term arrangements.

If we approve your application and you have a fixed term arrangement that has less than 6 years to run from the GFA start date, you’ll need to provide a new agreement.

If you have an oral tenancy agreement you will need to provide written evidence from your landlord confirming that you have security of tenure for at least 6 years. If you cannot do this then evidence of rent payments, estate correspondence, or other documentation such as subsidy claims that shows you have occupied the land/premises before 1 September 1995 will be acceptable.

Question 7.2: Tell us here if planning permission is needed for your project.  Select your answer from the drop-down options.

Planning permission may be required for alterations to existing buildings or the construction of new buildings. If a building is essential to the operation of the project, you need to provide us with any necessary planning permission.

We cannot assess applications or commit funds to projects that are waiting on planning permission to proceed. Therefore, you need to send a copy of the planning permission approval together with your full application submission.

We also need a copy of the plans and drawings that were approved as part of your planning permission. We’ll use these to confirm that these details match those in your application and to check that any specific requirements are met.

If you do not have planning consent for your project, your application will be incomplete and withdrawn from the scheme.

Question 7.2a: So that we can check the planning documents and plans on the Local Planning Authority (LPA) website, tell us the name of the LPA and the planning reference approval number.

Question 7.3: Use the table in the application form to list any other permissions or consents needed for your project, for example, listed building consent. If you are renting or leasing the project location, you will need to evidence development permission from the landowner/landlord (usually as an entry in the tenancy/leaseholder agreement).

Section 8. Ambient Environment details

Question 8.1: Tell us how many buildings are included in your grant-funded project. Confirm if you have submitted one or more Ambient Environment Location & Design (AELD) forms.

If you have more than one building in your project, complete a separate Appendix for each.

Use the free text box below to list the building references used on each of your submitted AELD forms.

Question 8.2: Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ from the drop-down options to confirm if, following a referral at Stage 2 the AELD element of your project is subject to a ‘condition’ to make it eligible for a full application submission.  This will be on the email inviting you to submit a full application.

If ‘Yes’,  use the free text box below to detail the condition and the actions you have taken to adjust your original project accordingly. For example, added equipment or made structural changes.

Question 8.3: Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ from the drop-down options to confirm whether there have been any non-conditioned changes to the project’s Ambient Environment details since you submitted the AELD form(s).

• if you select ‘No’, you are confirming that all the entries in your AELD form are correct and unchanged

• if you select ‘Yes’, you’re confirming that 1 or more of the entries in the AELD form was incorrect or has changed.

Use the space in the free text box provided to tell us what these changes are, and why they are needed.

If the details of the project described in this application are different from those described in the AELD form(s), these may make your project ineligible.  You should discuss any changes with our Grants Service team before submitting your full application to make sure you can proceed.

Section 9. Project details

This section provides more detail about your entries in the application appendix spreadsheet. This information will be used to help us assess how well your project meets the theme criteria for the grant.

Question 9.1:  If you are currently housing calves individually from 7 days, explain whether this housing will enable you to move to housing all calves from 7 days in groups.  If you do not currently house calves from 7 days individually, respond N/A.  This does not include calves which are kept in isolation on the advice of a veterinary professional, or where there are no other calves of a similar age.

Question 9.2: With reference to your declarations in the appendix (Theme details tab) describe how you are going to manage calf numbers and groups in the project building(s) to ensure that minimum space requirements based on the calf weight are maintained.

Question 9.3: Describe how you have incorporated the environmental benefits or mitigations declared in the Theme details tab section 5 of the appendix into your project.

If you have changed your environmental benefits or mitigations from those declared in your online checker submission, such as removing one or more entries, use the free text box provided to explain why. For example, the project has increased or decreased in scope, or some other issue or development has happened. If any such changes reduce the project score from your online application, and it consequently falls below the threshold to be invited to full application, the project may be rejected.

Question 9.4:  Confirm whether the project will deliver innovation(s) for your business, as detailed in the appendix (Theme details tab).

If you have declared the project will deliver innovations, tell us. If applicable, detail the existing equipment and processes you use for calf rearing. Describe how the new calf housing will use new technology or enable use of enhanced calf rearing techniques, to improve overall calf health and welfare. Any new techniques should also be referenced in the supporting letter supplied by your registered vet.

If applicable, explain how the project will enable new collaborations or other agreements. For example, contracted Calf-rearing arrangements for other cattle farmers. Identify all the businesses involved, specify whether these are short- or long-term arrangements, and list all the project related benefits for your business and their business.

Enter ‘N/A’ if the project will not deliver any innovations.

Question 9.5: We need to understand the current financial health of your business, and any associated businesses linked to the applicant business, so we can assess how funding the project may impact on your business operations.

Explain the latest outcomes in your accounts; why they may be strong or weak and, if they are negative or in a declining trend, give full background details as to why and how your business plans to mitigate the issue(s).

If there are any linked businesses, please comment on their current financial position as shown in their accounts that you have supplied.

Project Delivery

Projects need to be delivered within design, budget, and schedule to be successful. Use this section to tell us how you will manage your project to achieve these targets, and how you will deal with any issues that may occur during delivery of your project.

Question 9.6: Risks are defined as events that are (or could be) likely to occur. The table in the application lists examples of risks that could impact the successful delivery of your project.

Complete all columns in the table, selecting from the drop down choices and adding free text.

In column:

 A - select the (High/Medium/Low) chance of each risk occurring.

 B - select the likely (High/Medium/Low) impact if a risk does occur.

C - use free text to explain what you will do to reduce the chance of the risk occurring, and the steps you will take to ensure the project continues if it did.

Add any additional risks you identify in the ‘Other’ box at the end of the list. 

Question 9.7: Tell us who will be managing your project delivery, including:

• the people in the project team responsible for delivering the project to schedule, managing the grant, and raising the grant claims
• their current roles in your business
• their project delivery skills and experience, or whether you are bringing in outside expertise.

We may not be able to support projects that we consider have significant delivery risks and a lack of planned mitigation actions.

Section 10. Information and evaluation

10: Further contact

Please let us know if you are willing to be contacted in the future. This will help us improve the services and schemes we provide. Select your answer from the drop-down options.

Declaration

Please read this section and make sure that you agree with and can meet the requirements set out in it.

The declaration must be completed and submitted by someone holding ‘full permissions’ or ‘make legal changes’ permission on the Rural Payments service.

By submitting and agreeing to the submission of the full application form, you agree to the declaration. Complete the agent authorisation section if you want them to act on your behalf and contact us regarding your application. Provide them with a minimum of ‘make legal changes’ permission on the Rural Payments service.

When completing your declaration, be aware that RPA may withhold or recover all payments under a grant funding agreement if the agreement holder is responsible for a serious breach of their agreement and/or the 2021 Regulations. For example, if the agreement holder:

• gives false or misleading information
• fails to report a change of circumstances
• fails to provide requested information
• obstructs or prevents a site visit.

In serious cases, RPA may prohibit the agreement holder from receiving financial assistance under this scheme and other Defra schemes for up to two years. Agreement holders will be notified of any such decision and have the right to query it using RPA’s Complaints procedure on GOV.UK.

The person making the declaration and submitting the form must provide their CRN and email address so we can identify them on the Rural Payments service.

Supporting documents checklist

Email your supporting documents with your full application forms. Please email your supporting documents in ‘portable document format’ (PDF) files.

All supporting documents that you need to support your application are listed at the end of the full application form. See ‘Supporting documents checklist’ for a list of these. Review this list and tick the box to confirm you have included the document with your application. There is a comments box for you to comment, if necessary.

If we do not receive all the supporting documents needed for your project, we will not be able to assess it. This may impact on your project timescales.

If you do not provide these documents when we ask for them or they do not meet our requirements, your application may be rejected.

Please make sure your supporting documents meet the following requirements:

Application appendix spreadsheet

Detailed instructions on how to fill in the application appendix are set out at Part B above. All tabs must be fully completed and saved in the correct format of .xlsx.

Applicant business accounts Refer to the guidance in the supporting documents checklist, for applicant business accounts evidence requirements.

Linked business accounts We’ll also need to see the accounts for any businesses that the applicant business is linked to, as stated at Question 1.10a.

Consents and permissions If your project needs planning permission, follow the guidance at Question 7.2. Submit the plans as part of your application.

If you are a tenant, you must provide the relevant sections from your agreement as stated on the application form. If you have obtained any other consents, licences or permissions for your project, please forward copies to us.

Evidence of project funding Refer to the guidance at Question 5.5 for funding evidence requirements.

Quotes or other evidence of costs Refer to guidance at Appendix Tab C to see how many quotes/references to catalogue listings/ tenders you need to provide for every project item. This also shows the requirements the quotes must meet.

Second-hand items If you are proposing to purchase any project items second hand, you must get confirmation from the supplier covering all the points at 5.10 and send it to us with the quote.

Irrecoverable VAT Refer to the table at 5.7 to check if you can include irrecoverable VAT in your project costs. If you think that you can, send us a letter from an independent professionally qualified accountant that shows your VAT status and confirms that your business cannot recover the VAT you have included in the project costs.

Details and draft agreement between parties If your project involves formal collaboration between you and another business you need to provide a draft agreement, the heads of terms, and a letter or email of support from each business. We may ask to see a copy of the full and final signed agreement.

AELD evidence Evidence we need to support your AELD form and declarations.

Project Map showing the exact location of your planned building. This should show the same grid reference quoted on your AELD form.

Aerial overhead photograph of the project building: must be recent, dated, and show the building in relation to other buildings and features. This could be from Google Earth.

Building plan of the proposed building (can be a sketch plan), showing approximate dimensions, internal walls and indication of any proposed shared use, and including location of all grant-funded elements.

Site plan for the proposed building showing its location in relation to other buildings and their use. The plan must have arrows showing north and the direction of the prevailing wind at the site. Any sheltering features (buildings, hills, lines of trees) must also be shown.

Dated photographs of the proposed building or site, showing different perspectives (at least north, south, east and west), and showing the location of the building, its distance from other buildings and any sheltering features. 

Evidence of veterinary discussion A letter from a registered vet detailing the criteria in the full application form.