Year 5: Approved Projects
The following projects were approved in year 4 of the Farming in Protected Landscapes programme (March 2025 - 2026).
| Project name and reference | Project description | FiPL grant awarded | Offer/Expiry date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Okehampton Common Fire Mitigation (DNP-FPL-355) | This is a collaborative application submitted by the Okehampton Commoners Association for the purchase of essential wildfire mitigation equipment. The aim is to improve their ability to appropriately respond, mitigate and manage wildfires on Okehampton Common. The purchase of firefighting equipment will strengthen local wildfire response capacity. This equipment will be used by commoners, who are often the first responders to wildfires, working in close coordination with the Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service. | £5,576.66 | 04/07/2025 - 31/03/2026 |
| Dartmoor Blueberries (DNP-FPL-356) | This project aims to enhance biodiversity and improve sustainable land practices at Dartmoor Blueberries, a nature-friendly soft fruit farm, through the introduction of companion planting, restoring unmanaged crops, installing solar-powered cold storage and improving flow paths for natural irrigation, all whilst supporting wildlife habitats on the farm. | £9,838.10 | 11/07/2025 - 31/03/3036 |
| Sea Wool Rock Bags (DNP-FPL-358a) | This project aims to design and produce a Sea Wool Rock Bag prototype, which will be created using fully biodegradable Dartmoor Whiteface Sheep’s wool. Currently, plastic-covered rock bags are widely used to weigh down and embed wind turbines to protect subsea cables at sea on wind farms globally. This project focusses the production stage of this long-term project, working alongside Queen’s University Belfast (QUB) to produce and test a new, innovative, sustainable wool net that will not only create an alternative product for subsea operations, but will also provide more of a route to market for our Dartmoor farmers’ wool. | £35,308.99 | 16/07/2024 - 31/03/2026 |
| Dartmoor Farmers Association - Phase Two (DNP-FPL-357) | The Dartmoor Farmers Association are seeking to build on a very successful pilot project, aiming to deliver an additional 25 bespoke and engaging educational 'Farm to Fork' school visits for children. This will provide a unique opportunity for school children to visit and experience a farm on Dartmoor. At least 11 farms will be hosting and delivering the 25 school visits. The visits focus on increasing children’s understanding of where their food comes from, as well as the critical links between farming and nature. | £54,480.62 | 16/07/2025 - 31/03/2026 |
| Dartmoor Commoners Council Fire Plan III (DNP-FPL-360) | This project builds on the work that has been completed in phase 2 of the Dartmoor Strategic Fire Plan, aiming to create a Dartmoor wide wildfire plan which will reduce the risk of wildfires and shorten the response time when a wildfire does happen. The Dartmoor Commoners Council delivered this project, which includes access improvements across Dartmoor’s commons, for example, widening 60km of existing paths, improving 21 river crossings and repairing 150m of existing tracks. All stakeholders, commoners and contractors involved in this project will be trained to using our new mapping system, ensuring it remains live and up to date in the future. | £86,117.28 | 16/07/2025 - 31/03/2026 |
| Brook Manor Survey & Scae Farm Meadow Restoration (DNP-FPL-362) | The aim of this project is to undertake meadow restoration (6.23 ha) at Scae Farm, which will extend the neighbouring nature-rich meadow, and undertake a woodland bryophyte survey (90 acres) at Brook Manor, with the aim of informing the future management of the woodland. Restoring and extending the lowland meadow habitat and gaining information on the mosses, liverworts and hornworts present within the woodland will will maximise the value of the sites. | £5,865.60 | 14/08/2025 - 31/03/2026 |
| Shallowford Farm Countryside Code (DNP-FPL-363) | A project aiming to improve Shallowford Farm’s engagement and interpretation by increasing farm familiarisation before a school visit, and addressing an existing issue of pre-visit anxiety. This includes updating their ‘Countryside Code’ poster which is used for every visiting school group, a new brand guide and logo, standardised signage for farm buildings, an engaging farm map and improved promotional/educational leaflets. This project will help to contextualise and understand where children will be visiting ahead of signing up, and reduce the fear of the unknown. | £9,749.02 | 14/08/2025 - 31/03/2026 |
| Mary Tavy Common Fire Mitigation (DNP-FPL-364) | This project seeks to secure wildfire mitigation equipment that will enable continued habitat management and effective wildfire prevention on Mary Tavy common. With the recognised increase in fire load across the Dartmoor commons, the risk to the habitat from uncontrolled wildfires is significantly heightened. This equipment to be used by the commoners in the case of a wildfire, alongside the fire service. | £3,278.72 | 21/08/2025 - 31/03/2026 |
| Greenwell Farm - Wool Packing & Storage Improvements (DNP-FPL-369) | Since 2017, Greenwell Farm have been utilising an existing barn on site to store, pack and collect Dartmoor wool for members of the farming community. This project aims to improve their existing wool packing and storage process, by supporting the purchase of a Wool Press and accompanying Weigh Bar. In conjunction with this, infrastructure improvements will be made to the wool storage barn, enabling a cleaner and drier wool baling and storage system. Wool remains undervalued and underused, and this project provides an opportunity to add value to this ‘waste product’, and in turn contribute to a more resilient local wool economy. | £24,886.28 | 03/09/2025 - 31/03/2026 |