Getting and using a conservation covenant agreement
How to create and implement a conservation covenant agreement to preserve your land in England.
Applies to England
A conservation covenant agreement is a private, voluntary agreement to conserve the natural or heritage features of the land. This can include buildings on the land.
The parts of a conservation covenant agreement which set out what a landowner and responsible body must or must not do to help conserve the land become legally binding as a conservation covenant.
This guide is for landowners and potential responsible bodies.
A conservation covenant agreement must both:
- be for the public good
- have a conservation purpose
The public good means that the covenant must benefit the public in some way. For example, you could conserve land as a place of archaeological, architectural, artistic, cultural or historic interest that the public can enjoy.
Conservation can be for land or the setting of the land, and the land involved can be with or without an existing statutory designation.
A conservation covenant agreement must aim to conserve either the:
- natural environment or the natural resources of the land (or the setting of land)
- land as a place of archaeological, architectural, artistic, cultural or historic interest (or the setting of land)
You can use a conservation covenant agreement to suit your individual circumstances. For example, you can use it to:
- secure income and funding for conservation activities
- make sure that conservation commitments on the land are passed on to future landowners
Public access does not need to be a feature of a conservation covenant agreement. The parties will decide if they’ll allow the public to access the land affected by the covenant.
Seek legal advice
You should seek your own independent legal advice:
- before you enter into a conservation covenant agreement
- before you agree to the duration of the agreement
- before you change or end the agreement
- in relation to the execution of formalities required for the agreement
You can find a legal adviser. A lawyer can help you make sure the conservation covenant meets your individual circumstances and all legal requirements.
Who can create a conservation covenant agreement
A conservation covenant agreement must be between:
- a landowner who holds freehold title of the land or a leaseholder – if you’re a leaseholder, you must have a lease of more than 7 years with time remaining on it
- a responsible body
A responsible body can be:
- a local authority
- a public body or charity, where at least some of its main purposes or functions relate to conservation
- a private sector organisation, where at least some of its main activities relate to conservation
You need to apply to become a responsible body.
What you can use a conservation covenant agreement for
You can use a conservation covenant agreement for different reasons, including to:
- agree how land is managed to conserve habitat for rare species
- improve a habitat that’s a priority for conservation
- secure income and funding for conservation activities, for example an environmental charity could pay a landowner to manage land in a way that achieves long-term conservation results
- make sure that future landowners can manage and conserve land, buildings or monuments
- provide payments for ecosystem services and for biodiversity net gain
Examples of conservation covenant agreements include where a landowner:
- commits to maintain woodland on the qualifying estate and allowing public access
- refrains from using certain pesticides on native flora found on the qualifying estate
- commits to conserve a place of archaeological or other importance
How you can create a conservation covenant agreement
The landowner and responsible body must:
- decide how to achieve a conservation outcome that’s for the public good
- agree on the terms of the conservation covenant, for example how long it lasts for, and set these out in the agreement
- make it clear that the agreement is a conservation covenant
- register the conservation covenant on the appropriate local land charges register, so anyone who acquires the affected land in the future must legally follow the covenant
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) will send newly designated responsible bodies guidance about how to register a local land charge for their conservation covenants.
The landowner and responsible body should also:
- engage with local representatives of Natural England or Historic England and any other stakeholders (such as the Local Nature Partnership) in the area to understand local conservation priorities
- review relevant government and local nature recovery strategies
- design the conservation covenant to work with other relevant local conservation schemes
Execute the agreement as a deed
A conservation covenant agreement must be executed as a deed by the landowner and responsible body. To be a deed, the agreement must:
- be in writing
- make it clear and evident from its wording that it is intended by the landowner and responsible body to be a deed
- be validly executed as a deed – the formalities required for valid execution vary depending on who the parties to the agreement are
You should take independent legal advice on the execution formalities required for your conservation covenant agreement.
What you need to include in a conservation covenant agreement
The agreement must describe what the landowner and responsible body will do to conserve the land.
It needs to include one or more of the following:
- restrictive obligations – things that the landowner will not do on the land, such as not applying fertiliser to hay meadows or not planting trees at archaeological sites
- positive obligations – things that the landowner or responsible body will do on the land, such as planting species to create a flower-rich meadow
- things the landowner must allow the responsible body to do on the land
The agreement can also include ancillary obligations (requirements that support the restrictive or positive obligations). For example, making sure that:
- money is available to cover maintenance costs
- inspections take place to review progress
You can also include other information, for example:
- the duration of the conservation covenant
- any payments made by one party to another
- how to end the conservation covenant early (a break clause)
- how to make permitted changes to the conservation covenant (any change must be made by deed and must continue to ensure the conservation covenant agreement is for a conservation purpose and for the public good)
- how the responsible body will monitor the covenant, for example access and inspection arrangements
- how to deal with disputes
You can create a separate management agreement. This means you can make changes to how the land is managed, without changing the covenant itself. Management agreements are legally binding but operate differently to conservation covenants. You may want to seek legal advice to understand what obligations an agreement will place on you.
How long a conservation covenant lasts for
The landowner and responsible body decide how long the conservation covenant will last for.
On freehold land, if the duration of the conservation covenant is not expressly set out in the agreement, it will last indefinitely. If you’re a leaseholder, the conservation covenant will last until the lease ends.
You may need to set a duration if there are other requirements you need to comply with. For example, a covenant used for biodiversity net gain must run for at least 30 years.
Once a conservation covenant is created and registered with the appropriate local land charges register, it’ll be legally binding for:
- future landowners
- a responsible body that takes on the conservation covenant from another responsible body
If the future landowner is a leaseholder with a lease of 7 years or less, they’ll only be bound by the restrictive obligations (and any related ancillary obligations). The positive obligations, and any related ancillary obligations, will be binding for the landlord.
If the responsible body becomes the owner of the land, a conservation covenant will continue to bind the responsible body.
Responsible bodies: roles and responsibilities
You must:
- register the covenant on the appropriate local land charges register
- submit an annual return
- make sure the conservation covenant is created with the aim to conserve (protect, restore or enhance) the natural or heritage features of the land and be for the public good
As a responsible body, you will need to:
- have the resources, skills and expertise needed – including to monitor and enforce agreements
- make sure landowners are aware of the potential long-term implications of entering into the conservation covenant, and that they have sought legal advice where appropriate
- have contingency arrangements in place for any unplanned changes that could affect your management of conservation covenants
- comply with other relevant legislation and consider relevant guidance when the conservation covenant agreement is being created for a specific purpose, for example to secure biodiversity net gains
If land is being rented, you should work with the landowner to check that the tenant has either:
- given their consent to the terms of the conservation covenant agreement
- agreed to enter into the conservation covenant agreement
You need to monitor everything that the landowner has agreed to in the conservation covenant, so you can make sure that the landowner is carrying out the conservation covenant.
You could do this by including in the conservation covenant agreement how you will:
- carry out surveys on the condition of the conservation features, for example if you have agreed to do regular inspections
- keep accurate records about each conservation covenant, such as a copy of the conservation covenant, a map of the covenanted and surrounding land or reports of monitoring inspections
You will need to notify the Secretary of State if your organisation’s circumstances change – especially if purposes, functions or activities no longer relate to conservation.
Landowners: roles and responsibilities
You must make sure the conservation covenant is created with the aim to conserve (protect, restore or enhance) the natural or heritage features of the land and be for the public good.
You should monitor any actions that the responsible body has agreed to do, though the responsible body will usually have the main monitoring role.
New owners of land subject to a conservation covenant will take on liability for existing or past breaches of requirements in relation to the land.
Changing or ending the conservation covenant agreement
The landowner and responsible body can change a conservation covenant agreement or end it early.
Both parties must agree to the changes. The changes will be binding on future landowners and responsible bodies.
If you make any changes, you must make sure the conservation covenant agreement still has a conservation purpose and is for the public good.
The changes cannot result in someone becoming a party to the agreement who is not the landowner or a qualifying tenant.
The changes need to be made in a separate agreement.
That agreement must:
- be executed as a deed by the parties
- specify the relevant land and obligations
- specify the legal interest (also known as estate) the landowner or tenant has in the land
If a conservation covenant agreement secures biodiversity gains in relation to a planning permission, it must not be ended unless another mechanism is in place for securing those biodiversity gains for the remaining time of the agreement.
Updating the local land charges register
If a conservation covenant agreement is changed or ends early, the responsible body must check if the information on the local land charges register is still correct. If it’s incorrect, they must apply to the local authority or HM Land Registry to update the register.
The register will need updating if the:
- details on the register are incorrect, for example the conservation covenant now affects a different piece of land
- conservation covenant has a new end date
If the landowner and responsible body cannot agree
If the landowner and responsible body cannot agree on changes to the conservation covenant agreement, they can take the case to the Lands Chamber of the Upper Tribunal. This should be a last resort, as the process can be complicated and costly.
You can find out about the process for referring a case to the Upper Tribunal in the Tribunal Procedure (Upper Tribunal) (Lands Chamber) Rules 2010.
You can also seek independent legal advice on the options available to you.
If the responsible body or landowner break the terms of the conservation covenant
If either party fails to comply with the terms of the conservation covenant agreement, you can try to resolve the problem informally. If this does not work, you can use a mediator to help you find a solution.
You can take the case to court if you still cannot find a solution.
The court may decide to:
- issue an injunction
- issue an order requiring action to be taken
- award damages
You can get legal advice if you want to take a case to court.
Land with pre-existing rights or restrictions
Conservation covenants agreements do not override pre-existing:
- statutory rights
- obligations
- private property rights
- planning restrictions
- statutory designations
Pre-existing rights binding the land are still enforceable, even if you enter into a conservation covenant agreement later.
Pre-existing rights include rights:
- to use common land
- of statutory undertakers to inspect and maintain infrastructure, such as Network Rail or water companies
- held by someone else with a legal interest in the land, for example an easement or a restrictive covenant
- that provide public rights of way
If you’re a land manager, you should check:
- your legal deeds
- land registry title documents
- government-funded environmental scheme rules
You should take legal advice if you’re not sure whether there are any pre-existing matters affecting your property.
Tenants should also check the terms of their tenancies.
You need to design the conservation covenant to work with any existing rights or restrictions on the land.
If you’re a landowner, you risk enforcement action if you cannot comply with both the conservation covenant and the pre-existing rights or restrictions.
It is possible to create a conservation covenant in relation to common land. The conservation covenant will be subject to, and will not override, existing rights or restrictions affecting the land, such as registered common rights. You should engage with all those with an interest in the common land at an early stage, to make sure all relevant rights and restrictions are considered before an agreement is entered into.
Land that’s protected or has a statutory designation
You can:
- check if the land is subject to any statutory nature designations
- check if the land is subject to any statutory heritage designations
You will need to make sure that your proposed conservation covenant will work with the designation.
Statutory designations include:
- sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs)
- local nature reserves
- listed buildings
- scheduled monuments
For further information on statutory designations, contact:
- Natural England for the natural environment
- Historic England for heritage features
- the local planning authority for listed buildings
If you cannot complete actions in a conservation covenant because of a future statutory designation, that designation will provide a defence for breach of the conservation covenant.
Paying tax
You will need to seek your own advice from a financial adviser.
Transferring a conservation covenant to another responsible body
If you’re a responsible body, you can transfer a conservation covenant to another responsible body (unless the conservation covenant states that you cannot). You might need to do this if your organisation is going to be removed from the list of designated responsible bodies or if another responsible body is more suitable.
A conservation covenant can specify the type of responsible body that it could be transferred to.
The transfer is voluntary and both responsible bodies must agree to it.
The transfer must:
- cover all the responsible body’s obligations and any other obligations that the responsible body benefits from
- be set out in an agreement executed as a deed by both the current and future responsible bodies
The current responsible body must notify either the local authority or HM Land Registry about the transfer, depending on which authority manages the local land charges register. It must also provide any information the local authority or HM Land Registry needs to amend the registration.
The new responsible body must notify every person with obligations in the conservation covenant that it’s now the responsible body.
If there’s more than one responsible body in the conservation covenant, either body can transfer their part of the conservation covenant to a new responsible body. They must transfer the full set of obligations that apply to them.
You do not need the landowner’s consent to transfer unless the conservation covenant states this. The new responsible body must tell the landowner as soon as the transfer has happened.
If Defra revokes an organisation’s designation as a responsible body
Defra can revoke an organisation’s designation as a responsible body in one of the following circumstances. The organisation:
- is no longer operating
- requests to have its status as a responsible body revoked
- no longer meets the criteria for being a responsible body
When Defra revokes an organisation’s designation as a responsible body, they will confirm this with the organisation. They will also remove the organisation from the published list of designated responsible bodies.
If your organisation is removed from the list of designated responsible bodies, it will no longer be part of any conservation covenants.
If an organisation is no longer operating, or has requested to have its status as a responsible body revoked
If an organisation is no longer operating or has requested to have its status as a responsible body revoked, Defra may liaise with it about a possible successor.
If an organisation no longer meets the criteria for being a responsible body
If Defra is informed that a responsible body may be failing to meet the criteria for being a responsible body, they will ask the responsible body to provide information about:
- its performance
- how it plans to address any failings
- whether any of its functions are being carried out by another responsible body
The responsible body will have one month to provide this information.
If there are still concerns after the organisation provides this information, or if it does not provide the information in time, Defra will assess whether the organisation continues to meet the criteria for being a responsible body.
Defra will carry out this assessment using the same method used when selecting new responsible bodies. Defra will notify the organisation of the outcome of the assessment within 12 weeks.
If the Secretary of State concludes that the organisation does not meet the criteria for being a responsible body, Defra will revoke the organisation’s designation as a responsible body.
If the responsible body ceases to be a responsible body
Where the responsible body under a conservation covenant ceases to be a responsible body, the Secretary of State for the Environment will automatically become the custodian of the conservation covenant and will either:
- look for another responsible body to hold the conservation covenant – this may involve liaising with the outgoing responsible body on a possible successor
- decide to take on the role of the responsible body under the conservation covenant
Defra will contact both the landowner and the local land charges registrar to make them aware of this change.
When acting as custodian, the Secretary of State:
- can enforce the obligations of the landowner
- can agree with the landowner to change or stop obligations in the conservation covenant
- can exercise any other powers of the responsible body under the conservation covenant
- is not liable for fulfilling the responsible body’s obligations under the conservation covenant
You may want to get independent legal advice to understand the potential effects of custodianship for your conservation covenant agreement.
Get help
Email conservation.covenants@defra.gov.uk if you have any questions about creating a conservation covenant.
Last updated 6 February 2024 + show all updates
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Added links to the list of designated responsible bodies.
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Added information about how responsible bodies should consider tenants when creating conservation covenants agreements.
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Updated to reflect that Defra has launched the application process for organisations that want to apply to become a responsible body. Defra has also published guidance on how to apply, including the criteria for selection. Added information about the process for revoking an organisation’s designation as a responsible body.
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Updated the guidance to clarify that Defra will send newly designated responsible bodies guidance about how to register a local land charge for their conservation covenants.
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In early 2023, Defra will publish guidance for how to: - apply to become a responsible body - register a local land charge for your conservation covenant
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Updated 'Who can create a conservation covenant agreement' to explain who can be a responsible body.
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First published.