In January 2021, Fridays Ltd, an NFU member and egg producer based in Kent, challenged the 2017 non-domestic rating list in respect of the entry of three buildings used in connection with the storage and packaging of eggs for distribution.

The difference between the buildings falling within the exemption or not is worth over £200,000 to Fridays. The Valuation Officer at the Valuation Tribunal dismissed this challenge in September 2022.

Fridays appealed the Valuation Officer’s decision to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber), which was successful in 2024.

The Court of Appeal has recently ruled in favour of the egg producer, confirming that the three buildings in question, which were used for storing and packing eggs, are exempt from business rates.

This is because of the “functional connection” between the three buildings on Fridays’ farm and the production of eggs on the land at a number of other farms owned by Fridays.

‘Significant outcome’

Fridays was supported by funding from both the NFU and its Legal Assistance Scheme (LAS) and was represented by the NFU’s Legal Panel Firm, Thrings, and Cain Ormondroyd from Francis Taylor Building Chambers as legal counsel.

Andrew Friday, director of Fridays Ltd, said that this outcome recognises the “reality of modernised farming practices” and provides long-overdue clarity for the business.

“We are grateful to the court for its careful consideration and to the NFU and its LAS for its overall support and, more importantly, the significant funding, without which we wouldn’t have been able to progress this case,” he continued.

NFU president Tom Bradshaw said: “This is a significant outcome which not only delivers for Fridays Limited, preventing it from being unfairly taxed hundreds of thousands of pounds, but clarifies the application of the exemption.”

Nick Hamer, chair of the NFU’s Legal Board, added: “This case clearly demonstrates the value of the NFU and its LAS in supporting members in times of difficulty. I’d also like to thank our Legal Panel Firm, Thrings, for their representation.”

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Egg Box Storage is a recently established self storage facility located in Middle Aston, off the A4260 between Oxford and Banbury.

Business partners Charles and Patrick approached Kuboid, well-known in the industry, to redevelop an old poultry shed into the self storage facility.

“We thought there was an opportunity to make more revenue per square foot out of this building by offering service to the general public rather than just letting it to a tenant,” they said.

Building challenges

The pair were quickly impressed with Kuboid’s commitment to the project and response time. A site survey was booked in the diary within a few days.

“We came up with a design which was then significantly improved upon by Kuboid. They produced the plans and did a very good job designing it for us.”

Once the site survey was completed it was apparent that the long and narrow building, although small, came with multiple challenges due to its former use. 

When inspecting the building, Kuboid discovered that the floor was damp, and was uncertain whether the water was coming from the ceiling or the floor. 

To identify the source of the leak, Kuboid’s project management team placed cling film on the floor overnight, which helped them determine that the leak was due to condensation from the floor.

Quick fit-out

Once this was resolved the fitting team got to work to install the 35 units, ranging from 40–150 sq ft. 

It was decided that a mix of unit options would be best for the specific building.

Once the fit-out was completed, the company predicted that the units would fill very quickly, which proved to be true.

“When Kuboid did the fit-out they were brilliant. What I particularly liked was their positivity. We always felt reassured that we were going into the right business. 

“You could say, well, of course, Kuboid are going to say that, but they actually had good stats to back it up as to how well other customers had done and how quickly they filled their units.”

They added: “Funnily enough, we’ve just got planning permission to build some more units and Kuboid have been saying to us all along, that as soon as these new units are built, you’ll be coming back to us for more because you’ll run out of space.”

Despite the challenges that come with transforming an old building, the fit-out was completed in just two weeks. 

Charles and Patrick said they were over the moon with the high-quality self storage facility and decided to personally write Kuboid a thank you letter. 

“We haven’t even started marketing yet and people have already been in touch to reserve units,” they said.

The pair have since been in contact with Kuboid discuss building additional units.

Read more diversification news.

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The Sunnica Solar Farm is one of three new solar farms that have been approved last year by secretary of state for energy, Ed Miliband. He said that solar power was “crucial to achieving net zero”.  

The £600 million Sunnica project would see a 2,500-acre solar farm being built on a 15-mile stretch, affecting 16 parishes and towns along its route.  

Residents and farmers from Chippenham, Isleham, Freckenham, Fordham, West Row, Worlington, Burwell, Barton Mills, Red Lodge and Snailwell – who would all be affected by the development – have raised their concerns.  

The Say No to Sunnica Community Action Group said the solar farm would be built on some of the UK’s best, high-yielding irrigated farmland. Its members have also questioned the design and location of the development. 

Safety concerns

Local farmer Nick Wright, who refused an offer to sell some of his land and was a leading figure in the Say No To Sunnica action group, told the Racing Point: “In California in January, a lithium battery storage system, similar to the one Sunnica is proposing, caught fire and burned out of control for three days. 

“They had to evacuate everything and everyone within a three-mile radius of the fire. A three-mile radius from one of the sites here goes halfway through Newmarket.” 

The media outlet also confirmed that Sunnica has not yet submitted a battery safety management plan. 

Mr Wright added: “We’re all concerned about this, and if the batteries catch fire, they cannot be put out. You have to let them burn out themselves.  

“The only way you can control it is if you dampen down the area around them, which means contaminated water, and if that gets into the system we’re in real trouble.” 

According to Sunnica, the solar farm could power 172,000 homes and create 1,500 jobs during construction, with 27 full-time jobs to run it.  

The company also said the land used would be decontaminated and returned to its original, largely agricultural, use once the scheme was finished.  

Locals opposed

Back in July 2024, councillor Richard Rout of Suffolk County Council said that the approval of this solar farm is a “massive blow to local communities, agriculture, nature and our landscape” in the west of Suffolk.  

He added: “I am frankly shocked that the poorest infrastructure application that I have ever dealt with has now been approved – we highlighted numerous deficiencies in the submission.  

“The voices of thousands of local residents, businesses and organisations have not been listened to. This scheme will permanently and detrimentally impact the landscape of a vast part of West Suffolk and remove thousands of acres of land from food production.  

“Despite some improvements to the initial application, we felt that the proposals did not meet the standards we and local communities would expect from a project on this scale.   

“Local residents will quite rightly be asking what it takes for a project to be refused, when the worst project we have dealt with gets consented in the face of so much opposition.” 

Sunnica has been approached for a comment.

READ MORE: Campaigners call for ‘rooftop-first’ approach to solar panels on farmland 

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According to CPRE’s latest report, this loss equates to 56,000 hectares of farmland, an area similar in size to the city of Leeds, and represents a critical loss for both food security and environmental sustainability.

CPRE said that there has been a worrying decrease of nearly 7% in the number of urban fringe farm holdings since 2010.

The overall figure masks the difference between Green Belt (designations that surround the largest towns and cities) and other urban fringe holdings, with Green Belt faring comparatively badly.

In relation to England overall, this supports the view that there is greater pressure on urban fringe holdings, CPRE added.

A spokesperson for the charity explained: “The amount of land used for farming in urban fringe areas is decreasing, with much of this loss occurring in the Green Belt.

“At the same time, smallholdings have been increasing in number, with the potential to increase diversity and positively impact the urban fringe farming landscape.

“Overall, however, there is still much we do not understand about the reasons for these changes, and further research and support is needed to ensure that urban fringe farming is protected and able to thrive.”

Farms located in Green Belt areas

There are a broadly similar number of large farms (above 100ha) in the urban fringe area as in all land nationally. Small to medium-sized farms (those below 100ha) are more present in Green Belt areas than other countryside, including Comparator Areas (CAs).

CPRE said this suggests that Green Belts, rather than an urban fringe location on its own, have an influence in supporting small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) farm businesses, although it is unclear why this is the case from currently available data.

Such locations could therefore provide an advantage for farm viability if businesses are able to tap into many potential customers.

This is especially the case if farms have diversified into selling produce directly or providing services such as stabling. In such cases, consolidation into larger units may be less necessary or desirable.

Although numbers of urban fringe farms have declined in recent decades – with the biggest losses noted in small to medium-sized farms – this fall has now stabilised, the charity confirms.

Increaseing number of ‘micro farms’

Despite an overall rate of decline, very small farms have bucked the trend, rising in numbers more recently, reflecting a similar rise in national figures.

CPRE said: “Frustratingly, we lack a clear explanation for the statistical data, which makes it difficult to target support for the farms that need it most.

“Explaining the dramatic increase in very small farms is not straightforward. New businesses, for example, ‘micro farms’, could be forming as SME farms are broken up or sell land.

“It could reflect the economic difficulties of medium-sized farms: they are too large to adapt to niche markets alone but too small to compete on economies of scale selling into commodity markets, where margins can be wafer thin.

“The fall in the largest farms may be surprising, but not so if it reflects increased merging of farms, as other data indicates, with each farm, on average, managing more land: despite falls in overall numbers over 100ha, the area covered by these farms has increased by 330,000ha from 2010 to 2021.”

Changes in types of production farms

CPRE has also noticed that between 2010 and 2021, there were large changes in the types of production farms specialised in across England, with general cropping seeing one of the biggest increases (up 22%) and dairy the largest decrease (down 29.2%).

Overall, these national changes are reflected in the urban fringe, but there were bigger losses for each falling farm type, particularly cereals, grazing livestock and horticulture, and smaller increases.

For specialist pigs, there was a loss of urban fringe farms against a national trend of increasing number of holdings overall.

The charity added that numbers of dairy, horticulture and mixed farms “have fallen dramatically” since 2010, both nationally and in the urban fringe.

Dairy farms are down nearly a third nationally, and horticulture holdings are down a fifth. Mixed farms also fell by 14%. This decline was notably greater in urban fringe areas, reflected in falling numbers of urban fringe farms more generally.

Recommendations to strengthen British farming

Since 2011 there has been a notable fall in vegetable production in the UK, which may shed light on the identified falls in horticultural enterprises in the urban fringe. Furthermore, and concerningly, the rate of change appears to have accelerated sharply since 2021.

A spokesperson for CPRE continued: “Drawing on previous analysis from 2006, we can speculate on reasons for the more recent changes in urban fringe farming. These include the knock-on impact of wider societal changes (such as the development of major infrastructure); the need and appetite for other activities to supplement financial income (e.g. stabling, education); and the impact of local food networks.”

The charity added that issues which are preventing urban fringe farming from evolving and thriving are multitude: from planning system issues to a lack of clear understanding, these failures need our attention if changes are to be made.

“Our recommendations to strengthen farming on the urban fringe include improved policies, targeted support for farmers, and further data collection and analysis to better inform next steps,” CPRE concluded.

Read the report here.

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One of the event’s speakers, Baroness Minette Batters, a tenant farmer, cross-bench peer and former president of the NFU, said: “We need a plan, we need to be ambitious, and we need to be absolutely focused on the optimisation of agriculture. 

“We need to deliver for food and nature. The private sector is investing in agri-tech, and we are seeing things starting to scale up. But it’s not happening on the ground with food production.” 

Baroness Batters added that targets are also needed as they “drive everything”. 

“We have targets on defence, on housing, on net zero – we have environmental targets on taking land out of production, for clean air and water – but we still don’t have targets for food.  

“We cannot continue with this flippant approach to food production; we have a great climate here, we have the capability, the technology, the emerging startups – we really should be a test bed of innovation with our climate, on delivering what the world needs in terms of food security,” she continued. 

‘Countryside up for sale’

In terms of the government, there are three things which will be hugely influential, said Baroness Batters. These are a land use framework, a farming road map and a food strategy.  

She explained: “If all of those can come to life and be made to work, they can deliver. There is a real need to come together and focus on what they are going to look like.” 

A lot of other elements need to come together to make for successful farming in the future. 

“The countryside is up for sale; we’re selling off land to people who are not farming it and not producing food. We have to deliver a multi-faceted return from our land, and it’s the opportunity of our time. 

“There isn’t a silver bullet, but there is something around focusing on producing much more from much less, and that is all about the optimisation of food production,” Baroness Batters said. 

To help address this, the event brought together a range of agri-tech businesses which aim to optimise food production, from controlled environment agriculture (CEA) to using artificial intelligence for detecting cow lameness.  

“The event showcased how innovative technologies can help improve crop yields, resilience, sustainability and overall productivity,” explained Joanna Rufus, chair of South West AgriTech.  

“The workshop session held by Satellite Applications Catapult prompted valuable discussion around challenges for those developing agri-tech. This looked at building better relationships between developers and end users, as well as what challenges end users face, the barriers to adoption, and what support could be given to accelerate uptake,” she added. 

“It’s clear in the third year of the event that the appetite for agri-tech is still growing, and we hope this continues for the future,” Ms Rufus concluded. 

READ MORE: Meeting with former Defra minister aims at getting farmers ready for IHT changes

READ MORE: Shadow chancellor delivers blistering attack on Reeves during Spring Statement

Read more farm business news.

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The CLA approached 38 councils in England where over half the population lives in rural areas. In total, 35 responded to its Freedom of Information (FOI) requests.

The findings show:

Lengthy delays: Eight councils exceeded the government’s target time to issue decisions in 2023, with delays stretching from weeks to years.

Years-long backlogs: Fourteen councils are sitting on applications from before 2020, with some dating back to 2007.

Low approval rates: Several councils are approving less than 50% of projects, putting businesses and housebuilding targets at risk.

Rural businesses hampered by planning system

Victoria Vyvyan, president of the Country Land and Business Association, said that UK’s planning system is “in crisis” and it is “stagnating growth in the countryside”.

“Rural businesses could grow, provide much-needed housing and employment, and be nimble and fast-moving, but they’re being hampered by a planning system that’s anything but. It would be unheard of to make a tech company wait a decade to innovate; rural businesses should be no different.

“The productivity of rural areas lags 14%, and that is in no small part due to planning delays and refusals. Yet the latest revisions to the National Planning Policy Framework offer little to fix this.

“Labour is scrambling to find economic growth, but the opportunity is right here. Let’s clear the backlogs and create a planning system that powers rural growth,” Ms Vyvyan continued.

Lengthy delays

Councils are legally required to make decisions on minor planning applications within 56 days and major developments within 91 days. Yet, nearly half of the 18 councils that shared their average response times failed to meet these targets in 2023 – holding back innovation and growth in the countryside, CLA said.

Dorset Council reports averaging 1,372 days (3.75 years) to issue a decision on applications, while Babergh District Council, Mid Suffolk District Council and West Lindsey District Council took 345 days, 381 days and 170 days, respectively, for major applications.

Elsewhere, South Cambridgeshire District Council and Cambridge City Council average 105 days, while Torridge District Council averages 107 days for minor and major applications.

To alleviate delays, the CLA is calling on the government to expand permitted development rights to make it easier for businesses to diversify.

Additionally, it is campaigning for the introduction of “permission in principle” for rural economic development. This would reduce the huge upfront application costs and therefore mitigate the financial impact of delayed or rejected applications.

Five-year backlogs

Nearly half of councils are still sitting on cases from before 2020, including some stretching back decades.

In North Norfolk, an application to build 94 homes and a community centre, submitted eight years ago, is still yet to be approved despite continued back and forth. Similarly, Mid Devon is also yet to approve an ongoing proposal for 90 new homes submitted in 2019.

Even smaller projects have faced delays. A 2007 application for a recreational fishing lake in South Norfolk dragged on for seven years before seemingly stalling in 2014. Elsewhere, a 2017 application for an office building in Cambridge was left in limbo after two and a half years of back and forth.

To prevent backlogs, the CLA is calling on the government to invest £25m to hire an extra planning officer for every local authority.

This would speed up decisions and ensure councils can deliver overdue reform to the planning system. Simultaneously, it is campaigning for better training of local authorities on rural issues to ensure the planning system delivers for the countryside and its needs.

Low approval rates

Some councils are rejecting nearly half of all applications, from diversification projects to infrastructure development, putting local economies and businesses at risk.

Central Bedfordshire approved just 50% of projects between August 2023 and August 2024, while West Lindsey District Council approved 61%.

Meanwhile, government statistics show alarmingly low approval rates for new homes.

Maldon approved just 44% of major development applications from January 2023 to June 2024, Woking approved 29%, and Wychavon 57%. In fact, 18 councils rejected one in four major housing projects (10 or more homes), putting government housing targets under threat.

The CLA is calling on the government to cut red tape to support the development of a small number of homes in a large number of villages – providing lifelong housing for young and old alike and creating thriving communities.

Appetite for reform

As FOI data reveals the problems inherent in the planning system, new polling reveals widespread demand for change.

A Survation poll of England’s 100 most rural constituencies, commissioned by the Country Land and Business Association, reveals the majority (56%) believe reforming the planning system would stimulate growth in rural areas. Likewise, 59% believe the government needs to build more affordable homes.

Peter Hogg, farmer and rural business owner in the North East, said: “The planning system is crippling businesses like mine. We had a farmhouse I wanted to convert into a B&B to help diversify our income.

“But the application dragged on for over a year due to a dispute over adding a small sunroom, which should have been straightforward given it was replacing a previous extension we’d demolished.

“The delay meant we lost a full season and over £30,000 in revenue. And when permission was finally granted, it took just two weeks and £800 to build the sunroom – four times less than what we paid in planning costs.

“If businesses like mine are to succeed, government must cut the red tape that’s stunting our growth and livelihoods. Beyond the financial impact, the mental toll is profound. Many perceived problems could be sorted in 20 minutes over a cup of tea.”

Angus Forrest, rural landowner in Essex, added: “I’ve been trying to build much-needed homes for years, but the process is too slow and costly. The Parish Council identified the site as the best place for development in 2008 at the beginning of the local plan process.

“It was not until 2022 that the local plan was adopted allocating the site for 30 houses, yet I’m still nowhere near to breaking ground despite years of pre-planning enquiries and the collation of specialist reports.”

Mr Forrest said that he has spent £30,000 so far, with at least another £70,000 in fees ahead, before a single home is built.

“At every stage, delays and bureaucratic processes add time and expense even though the site was subject to extreme scrutiny and assessment to have been allocated in the first place.

“Rural communities need affordable homes but delivering them remains a challenge. If the government wants to ‘get Britain building,’ it must reform the planning system to make it easier for landowners to build a small number of quality homes in a large number of villages,” he concluded.

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As deputy prime minister and secretary of state for housing, Angela Rayner explained, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill aims at delivering 1.5 million new homes in the country. 

The government confirmed that the Bill will see “significant measures introduced” to speed up planning decisions to “boost housebuilding and remove unnecessary blockers and challenges” to the delivery of vital developments like roads, railway lines and windfarms. 

This will boost economic growth, connectivity and energy security while also delivering for the environment, the Labour government added. 

MP Rayner said: “We’re creating the biggest building boom in a generation – as a major step forward in getting Britain building again and unleashing economic growth in every corner of the country, by lifting the bureaucratic burden which has been holding back developments for too long. 

“The Planning and Infrastructure Bill will unleash seismic reforms to help builders get shovels in the ground quicker to build more homes, and the vital infrastructure we need to improve transport links and make Britain a clean energy superpower to protect billpayers.”

READ MORE: Will farmers be forced by councils to sell their land below market rate? 

‘The end for British farming’

One of the key measures, compulsory purchase orders (CPO), is set to hand greater powers to local authorities so they could buy land at its current price rather than the value of what it would be if it were to be developed, The Telegraph reported. 

Currently, land bought under CPOs is sold at its so-called ‘hope values’, which reflect beliefs on what the land would be worth with the requisite planning permission. 

It can sometimes significantly drive up prices, leading to major delays as owners haggle over values. 

Following the new reforms, councils would be able to apply for permission to use compulsory purchase orders without hope values and without needing to consult the government, the media outlet explained. 

TV celebrity and farmer Jeremy Clarkson has commented on this news in his latest column for The Sun. 

He said that the government’s strategy sacrifices farmers interests in favour of “wind turbines or houses for the dinghy people”. 

“I could wake up one morning in the very near future to be told by West Oxfordshire District Council that they now own my farm,” he added. 

Mr Clarkson called the policy “truly astonishing,” and pointed out its disturbing similarities to Mugabe’s controversial land reforms in Zimbabwe that resulted in significant economic and farming distress. 

He added: “It is without doubt the end for British farming. Farming will go the way of mining, shipbuilding and the steel plants.” 

The star of Clarkson’s Farm has also urged British farmers to take inspiration from French agricultural protests, however, he warned against tactics such as “spraying slurry all over the Labour Party’s rural offices” for fear of provoking the wrath of “obergruppen-fuhrer Starmer”.  

Mr Clarkson has another idea for a farmers’ protest. He wrote: “Burn every single avocado and every pint of almond milk that comes through a British port. That would get their attention in Islington.” 

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Farmers, who have already been facing life-changing difficulties connected to changes to the inheritance tax reliefs, may now have another worry on their shoulders.

As deputy prime minister and secretary of state for housing, Angela Rayner, explained, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill aims at delivering 1.5 million new homes in the country.

The government confirmed that the Bill will see “significant measures introduced” to speed up planning decisions to “boost housebuilding and remove unnecessary blockers and challenges” to the delivery of vital developments like roads, railway lines and windfarms.

This will boost economic growth, connectivity and energy security while also delivering for the environment, the Labour government added.

MP Rayner said: “We’re creating the biggest building boom in a generation – as a major step forward in getting Britain building again and unleashing economic growth in every corner of the country, by lifting the bureaucratic burden which has been holding back developments for too long.

“The Planning and Infrastructure Bill will unleash seismic reforms to help builders get shovels in the ground quicker to build more homes, and the vital infrastructure we need to improve transport links and make Britain a clean energy superpower to protect billpayers.”

‘Hitting landowners isn’t the solution’

One of the key measures, compulsory purchase orders (CPO), is set to hand greater powers to local authorities so they could buy land at its current price rather than the value of what it would be if it were to be developed, The Telegraph reported.

Currently, land bought under CPOs is sold at its so-called ‘hope values’, which reflect beliefs on what the land would be worth with the requisite planning permission.

It can sometimes significantly drive up prices, leading to major delays as owners haggle over values.

Following the new reforms, councils would be able to apply for permission to use compulsory purchase orders without hope values and without needing to consult the government, the media outlet explained.

Country Land and Business Association (CLA) deputy president Gavin Lane said: “We urgently need more affordable housing, but pushing landowners into selling land isn’t the answer.

“Compulsory purchase drags landowners through years of stress, disruption and compensation battles, harming individuals and communities alike.

“Instead of pushing landowners to bear the burden, why not work with them? Most want to see progress and could deliver development faster, cheaper and with more care.

“Hitting landowners isn’t the solution – fixing the planning system is.”

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In December last year, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority announced it would remove permitted development rights (PDR), which legally allow landowners to run a campsite for 28 days per year without applying for extra permissions.

The move is being enacted under Article 4 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995, which allows the removal of PDR to protect the character of an area.

But landowners affected by the ban say it will impact their livelihoods and could even force them to leave the national park.

David Williams, who runs Clifftops Camping at Druidston in the National Park, said that losing the income from the campsite might mean he has to reconsider his entire way of life.

Mr Williams grew up in neighbouring Carmarthenshire on a dairy farm but relocated to the National Park 30 years ago. He now lets most of the land to a neighbour for grazing.

During the summer he runs the campsite for the full 28-day period, which provides vital income to support his other jobs.

Mr Williams said: “I’m a professional photographer. I focus on surfing and get my pictures published in surfing magazines. I love Pembrokeshire, and I love surfing. But there’s not much money in it.

“I’m also a computer programmer and build websites. But where I am, businesses don’t have a lot of cash, so my income stream is limited.

“To take away the campsite income would be devastating. I would have to reconsider my whole life, possibly go back to full time employment and possibly move. There’s not a lot of work for a computer programmer in Pembrokeshire.”

‘No issues and no complaints’

Mr Williams added the move felt like a “kneejerk reaction” to the popularity of Pembrokeshire during COVID, when visitors who could not go abroad flocked to the area. 

He added: “2020 and 2021 were exceptional summers. I’ve lived in Pembrokeshire for 30 years and those two summers were by far the busiest due to the restrictions on foreign travel and people coming out of lockdown. 

“But the last two summers have been normal British summers, and as a consequence, Pembrokeshire has been emptier than it’s been for 10 years. It really feels like an overreaction.” 

Another campsite operator who did not want to be named for fear of reprisals from park officials said the move clamped down on the ability of people in the National Park to make a living. 

They added: “I live on a small farm, which doesn’t make a lot of money. We set the campsite up to diversify the farm and make a bit more money. 

“We wouldn’t have done it if it wasn’t for the 28-day rule because it is a big risk. You need to know it is going to work.” 

The person said that the removal of the 28-day rule would put others off from setting up legitimate campsites and would significantly impact on those who run caravan and camping sites in summer each year under the rule. 

They added: “We’ve been busy, which proves there is a need for it, and we’ve had no issues, no complaints from local people and no problems with the council. 

“I don’t understand what they’re trying to achieve by taking it away. There is all this talk of the cost-of-living crisis, and they’re clamping down on a way for people to make a second income and run their own business. A lot of people cannot afford to set up a big business. This is a great way for them to do something.” 

‘Draconian and completely out of step move’

Dan Yates, founder of Pitchup.com, described the situation as a “kick in the teeth” for farmers and landowners trying to scrape a living in the National Park. 

Pitchup.com successfully campaigned to get permitted development extended in England from 28 days to 60 days last year, and has since been lobbying the Welsh government for similar changes. 

The move would add millions to the Welsh rural economy, Mr Yates claims, by freeing up farmers and landowners to host thousands of extra tourists. 

With research showing that around half of the tourist spend is off-site, this would have far-reaching, positive consequences for local pubs, shops and restaurants, at a time when 50 pubs are closing each month in England and Wales. 

Mr Yates said: “At a time when governments are understanding the positive impact pop-up campsites can have on the rural economy, and changing the regulations accordingly, this move by Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority is both draconian and completely out of step. 

“It is also premature. The new PDR regime in England has addressed many of the objections cited as reasons for the Article 4, demonstrating there is a way to manage activities like camping without impinging on the character of an area, for example, by introducing a requirement to notify the council and removal of rights in the most sensitive areas such as SSSIs. 

“Recently, the Welsh government announced plans to consult on extending permitted development rights for camping, and if it were to adopt similar regulations to those in England, the use of Article 4 in this clumsy and unfair way would be completely unnecessary.” 

Mr Yates added farming is becoming increasingly difficult, particularly in Wales, and farmers are continually being encouraged to diversify.  

“Many want to do that, but moves like this undermine confidence, take away choice, and leave those struggling to make ends meet angry, frustrated, and further alienated,” he said.  

“This a devastating blow for those who are impacted by it, and I would urge Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority to reverse this decision at once.” 

The ban is due to come in on 1st January 2026, however, a public consultation is currently running until 21st February, where people can have their say on this issue. 

More information on the public consultation can be found here.

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Cornwall Council is offering a Farm Business Tenancy (FBT) of up to 20 years for Trenarry Farm in Truro, while Somerset Council is inviting tenders for two large blocks of arable and pasture.

An 83-acre block of permanent pasture near Sidmouth in Devon is also due to hit the market next week.

Trenarry extends to 221 acres and offers an opportunity for someone looking to establish their own farming unit or expand an existing business.

Chris Anderson, partner at Carter Jonas, said: “A 20-year tenancy doesn’t come up very often, so this is a really exciting prospect for someone looking to take the next step in their farming career.

“It would make a great starter dairy farm, and it has some very interesting features, such as an on-farm methane collection system.”

The property consultancy said that the council has invested heavily in slurry storage and is therefore stipulating that the incoming tenant must continue operating it mostly for milk production.

The slurry acts as feedstock for an on-farm biogas processing plant, which is let to Bennamann – a company working with New Holland to develop methane collection and processing. The slurry lagoon provides 2,773 m³ of storage.

Trenarry’s land is mainly put to pasture and includes a substantial 43-acre block of woodland designated as a County Wildlife Site.

“There is an area of species-rich grassland too, and it is a requirement of the landlord that this is managed in a manner which protects it, by controlling scrub, keeping it grazed and not fertilising it,” Mr Anderson added.

Accommodation for the successful tenant comes in the form of a traditional Cornish stone-built six-bedroom farmhouse, which will undergo significant refurbishment before the start of the tenancy on 1st April.

A range of traditional and modern farm buildings are located across two separate sites, within half a mile of each other.

Interested farmers need to be quick with their applications to Carter Jonas’ Truro office, though, as the deadline is 7th February. A viewing day takes place on Tuesday, 14th January.

Land in Somerset and Devon

Further up the country, Somerset Council has launched two parcels of land on separate FBTs.

The first, which comprises 127 acres of pasture, is located at Leaze and Selwood Farms in Lympsham, near Weston-super-Mare.

Jack Mitchell, partner at Carter Jonas in Taunton, said: “The land can be let as a whole or in two lots, and consideration will be given to tenders from new and recent entrants to agriculture.”

The largest lot has 103 acres split across eight fields, while lot two is 24 acres across two enclosures.

Tenants looking for land close to Ilminster can tender for 85 acres of arable and pasture at Shave Farm in Horton as a whole or in two lots.

A two-year FBT is available on the land, which has predominantly been used for arable cropping alongside a smaller area of pasture.

Tenders on both Leaze and Selwood Farms and Shave Farm are due by midday on Wednesday, 26th February.

The Taunton Carter Jonas is also letting 83 acres of permanent pasture at Tipton St John, near Sidmouth, this month. The land is available in up to three lots by informal tender.

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