Ian Ashbridge

We are delighted to invite you to our Professionals’ Rural Breakfast Seminar on Tuesday 2nd July 2024 when we will be discussing topical issues affecting farmers, estate owners and professionals in Oxfordshire and further afield.

A recent ministerial announcement creates a new headache for solar developments, as confusion grows over land policy – while the idea of a Land Use Framework remains opaque.

Never before has land been subject to so many competing demands. Could it now be time to embrace the concept of a Land Use Framework? And where does that leave farming, now in a largely unsupported world?

Announcements on the next set of Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) Actions are long overdue, with some future Actions yet to be confirmed. However, the recent release of the 2023 SFI Handbook is very welcome as it offers land managers a more flexible and simplified opportunity to receive payments.

Looking out at your plot of land, it may seem like a pristine site ready for new homes, businesses, and a thriving community.

It turns out that announcements on farm and environmental policy are like London buses - you wait for ages and then three come along at once.

A new movement is gaining pace in farming. It’s even found its way into farm policy. Yet it remains opaque, nebulous and slightly hard to define. In this paper we look at Regenerative Agriculture, and where it might cross over with other schools of farming thought.

Regenerative Agriculture is capturing headlines and attracting attention – but few agree on exactly what is involved. In a paper published by Bidwells earlier this year, we attempt to define the concept – and find a lot of good old-fashioned husbandry at its heart.