Events and resources
Chantal’s recommendations
Read
Farmers Weekly article: Three ways private funding works for arable farmers.
A friend of LENs, Sarah Juggins, who runs the Norfolk cluster group with more than 70 farms, has written a book, ‘Home is where the herd is’ and is a recommended read for any cattle enthusiast.
Listen
The future of food: Can regenerative farming save our soil? This insightful BBC episode features Andy Cato of Wildfarmed.
The latest podcast from Regenerate Outcomes features Welsh dairy farmer Andrew Rees from Moor Farm in Pembrokeshire. Andrew has recently begun mentoring farmers on soil management and talks about his focus on production from grass.
Watch
Lessons from six years of herbal leys. Access key practical insights and video footage from farmers successfully establishing herbal leys in the Derbyshire White Peak region. Watch online at the Defra Farming Blog.
UK Events
Ceres Rural Workshops
As part of the LENs Farmer Training Pilot, in conjunction with Ceres Rural, we’re delighted to invite LENs Farmers to a series of on‑farm learning days taking place this June and July.
These sessions, designed exclusively for LENs farmers, are practical, informal and grounded in real farm experience – bringing you together to explore what regenerative transition looks like on the ground, and what it means for day‑to‑day decisions.
This is part of a broader training programme, with further events and topics planned later in the year, providing ongoing opportunities to learn, share experiences and engage with the wider LENs network.
At the end of this session, you should leave with:
· A clearer understanding of how LENs works, and how ecosystem services, measures, funding and trade fit together
· Greater confidence in regenerative principles, and how these translate into practical, commercial decisions
· More clarity looking ahead to Harvest 2027, including key considerations and realistic next steps
· A practical understanding of natural capital, what “good” looks like on farm, and why condition matters
· Confidence applying these ideas in practice, through a guided farm walk and peer discussion
Where and when
· Royston, Hertfordshire – 24 June | Law Farming
· York, Yorkshire – 25 June | Castle Howard Estate
· Spratton, Northamptonshire – 7 July | The Red Barn
· Diss, Norfolk – 8 July | Rookery Farm
All events run from 10am – 4pm and include lunch
If you’d like to attend, please register on Eventbrite or email louise.petrakas@ceresrural.co.uk. Places may be limited to keep the sessions focused and interactive.
Cereals
Chantal will be at Cereals on Wednesday 10 June. Please get in touch if you want to connect during the day.
Groundswell
The LENs team will be out in force for Groundswell this year. Please come and say hello at the LENs tent (E10). I’m pleased to announce that we will host a panel discussion, bringing our best regenerative agronomists from Hungary and Poland to share their learnings and achievements from apply regenerative farming practices in drought conditions and how this has resulted in stable or increased yields. We hope to see you there!
Oakbank
Open evening on 4 June, 16:30 BST. An informal tour of the 158ha field-scale Regen Trials Project on hanslope series clay.
Limagrain Field seeds open days
A chance to see field scale demonstrations, discuss varieties, livestock integration, soil health, biodiversity and carbon storage. Events include food and free places need to be booked. 4 and 22 June.
Open Farm Sunday (OFS)
Open Farm Sunday is 7 June this. We really encourage our farmers to participate in OFS and celebrate life on the farm with members of the public. We would love to share your experiences in the next newsletter, so please do share photos and a few words with Chantal.
Apply (England only)
The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI)
The Sustainable Farming Incentive 2026 opened on the 1 June for farms under 50 hectares or farms without an existing scheme. Countryside Stewardship capital grants will be opening in July, so make sure you have completed any claims for existing capital grants to ensure you are eligible for the new round of funding. In July we will run a webinar about stacking public and private financing and how to maximise income from the SFI. Please email Chantal for more info.
Countryside Stewardship
PA4s can be applied for in England to provide funding for a agroforestry plan. Earlier in the year we met with DeepRoots, which is a funded, supported route into agroforestry for English farmers. It is the first dedicated agroforestry platform for UK farmers, built in close collaboration with the Forestry Commission to streamline how agroforestry plans get delivered on the ground. English farmers can access the PA4 grant — £1,268 from Defra under Countryside Stewardship — to fund a professional, farm-specific agroforestry plan. DeepRoots manages the full Forestry Commission and Natural England application, so farmers end up £500 better off with a fully approved plan, and no obligation to plant. If they do choose to plant, further CSHT funding unlocks trees, guards, and maintenance.
Beyond the funding, agroforestry delivers real outcomes on working farms — in-field biodiversity, living soils, cleaner water, natural shelter, and landscape-level resilience, all without taking productive land out of use. It’s “Good for the farm, good for nature”. Learn more at www.deeproots.ag
