CUP3: General moorland management
Source: gov.uk (2025-09-10)

What you must do to get paid for this CSHT action and advice on how to do it.

This action is part of Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT). You must read the CSHT guidance (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-higher-tier-csht) before you apply.

Duration

10 years

How much you’ll be paid

£55 per hectare (ha) per year

Action’s aim

This action’s aim is to:
- follow best practice management on moorland
- prevent degradation
The purpose of this is to:
- support habitats and species recovery
- protect historic and archaeological features
- improve the landscape character
Where you can do this action:

You can do this action on eligible land that:
- is above the moorland line
- is above the stockproof boundary of enclosed semi-natural vegetation and may include allotments, intakes or newtakes
- contains one or more moorland priority habitats or species, unless you’re also applying for CUP7: Manage non-peat moorland soils for flood and drought resilience supplement (https://www.gov.uk/find-funding-for-land-or-farms/cup7-manage-non-peat-moorland-soils-for-flood-and-drought-resilience-supplement), where you do not need one or more priority habitats or species
If a land parcel is located above and below the moorland line, you can enter it into this action if:
- most of the area is above the moorland line
- it’s managed as one grazing unit with adjacent land parcels located above the moorland line
This action can only be used in combination with any of the following Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier moorland management actions:
- CUP8: Moderate livestock grazing on moorland
- CUP9: Low livestock grazing on moorland
- CUP10: Limited livestock grazing on moorland
- CUP11: Shepherding livestock on moorland (no required stock removal period)
- CUP12: Shepherding livestock on moorland (remove stock for a minimum of 4 months)
- CUP13: Shepherding livestock on moorland (remove stock for a minimum of 6 months)
- CUP14: Shepherding livestock on moorland (remove stock for a minimum of 8 months)
Eligible land

You can do this action on land that’s:

an eligible land type

registered with an eligible land cover on your digital maps

declared with a land use code (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/land-use-codes-rural-payments) which is compatible with the eligible land cover

Available area you can enter into this action

Total available area in the land parcel.

Rotational or static action

This action is static. This means you must do it on the same location each year of the action’s duration.

What to do

Your Natural England adviser will assess your land. They’ll work with you to adapt and agree the activities you must do to achieve this action’s aim. All mandatory activities will be set out in your agreement document.

The advice you’re given from Natural England is specific to your land which means (where relevant) you may need to:
- agree a moorland habitat plan with your Natural England adviser for any cutting or burning of heather, rough grass, bracken, gorse or vaccinium
- control dense rush so it does not cover more than an agreed area of land
- control scrub and bracken on the moorland so they do not become dominant vegetation, particularly on historic or archaeological features
You must report any accidental burns to the Rural Payments Agency.

You must not:
- apply pesticides – you may be able to use herbicides to spot-treat or weed-wipe for the control of injurious weeds, invasive non-native plant species, nettles or other plants if this has been agreed with your Natural England adviser
- carry out mechanical operations or other activity that may disturb breeding or non-breeding birds during the breeding season (typically mid-March to late July)
- maintain artificial drains
- plough, cultivate or reseed, harrow or roll unless part of your agreement
- apply any fertilisers, manures or lime (unless agreed with your Natural England adviser)
- create new access for vehicles – you can only use agreed existing access routes
- supplementary feed livestock on land entered into this action, unless this has been agreed with your Natural England adviser to support the purpose of this action
The feeding of hay or haylage is permitted in cases of extreme weather for the purpose of animal welfare only.

Extreme weather is defined as 2 or more consecutive days of deep snow or hard frost.

Read more about supplementary feeding in extreme weather in the advice section of this action.

When to do it

You must do this action each year of its duration.

Evidence to keep

You must keep evidence to show what you have done to complete this action. If it’s not clear that you have done this action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve its aim, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) may ask for this evidence.

You must supply the evidence if they ask for it, including:
- management activity on the action area for each parcel
- receipted invoices, consents or permissions connected with the work
- photographs of the extent of scrub and bracken on any historic and archaeological features on the site before works start
For each supplementary feed (due to extreme weather or as agreed), you must provide:
- a record of the time and date
- the location using maps and photographs
Other actions or options you can do on the same area as this action

You can do the following actions or options on the same area in a land parcel as this action.

Some actions or options can only be done on the same area if they’re done at a different time of year to this action.

You can do the following actions or options on the eligible boundaries of a land parcel entered into this action:
- CSHT actions: CWT3, CHRW4
- SFI 2024 actions: CHRW1, CHRW2, CHRW3, BND1, BND2, WBD10
- SFI 2023 actions: HRW1, HRW2, HRW3
- CS option BE3 (management of hedgerows)
Consents, permissions and licensing requirements

To apply for this action, you’ll need:
- to agree an implementation plan or feasibility study with your Natural England adviser if you intend to carry out moorland restoration
- Scheduled Monument Consent (https://historicengland.org.uk/advice/planning/consents/smc/) from Historic England for any work on scheduled monuments
- consent from Natural England for any activity on land designated as a site of special scientific interest (SSSI) (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/protected-areas-sites-of-special-scientific-interest#get-consent-to-carry-out-operations-on-your-land)
You may need to:
- get a wildfire mitigation plan, if required
- get a moorland habitat plan agreed with your Natural England adviser for any cutting or burning of heather, rough grass, bracken, gorse or vaccinium
- get a wildlife licence (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/wildlife-licences) from Natural England if your activities affect a protected species or their habitat
- get advice from your Forestry Commission woodland officer or Natural England adviser if you have other archaeological or historic features on your agreement land
All archaeological and historic features (including scheduled monuments) are identified in your Historic Environment Farm Environment Record (HEFER).

If you’re a tenant, it’s your responsibility to check whether your tenancy agreement allows you to complete what’s required in the actions you choose. You may need your landlord’s consent.

Capital grants to support this action

If you need to complete an implementation plan or a feasibility study before you apply, you can apply for funding through capital grants plans funding (https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/capital-items-guidance-for-applicants-and-agreement-holders#capital-grants-plans).

You can also apply for capital items (https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/capital-items-guidance-for-applicants-and-agreement-holders) to help you achieve the action’s aims. Your Natural England adviser will discuss eligible capital items with you.

Advice to help you do this action

The following optional advice may help you to do this action. Your agreement document will set out all the activities you must do.

All of those with a management interest or right on the land need to be in agreement before you apply for this action.

Managing your moorland

Moorlands contain:
- a variety of priority habitats and species that are important for nature and the environment
- many historic and archaeological features
Cutting and burning

It is not appropriate to carry out burning management on peat soils.

You may need to adapt your management activities to prioritise managing habitats, historic and archaeological features sensitively.

There are typically more constraints on burning activities for this action than the current regulations on burning heather and grass (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/heather-and-grass-burning-apply-for-a-licence).

Using vehicles

Take care not to damage moorland through your vehicle use.

Water flow is an important component of blanket bog and wet heath hydrology – this can be damaged by vehicle use.

Restoring peatland

Restoring hydrology is crucial for peatland restoration. It’ll likely involve blocking artificial drainage such as grips and drains. You can use WN1: Grip blocking drainage channels (https://www.gov.uk/countryside-stewardship-grants/grip-blocking-drainage-channels-wn1) to support this work.

Supplementary feeding in extreme weather

During periods of extreme weather, manage supplementary feeding to avoid damaging habitats such as blanket bog, heather, bilberry and other heath, species-rich grassland and mires. Move feeding sites regularly to minimise damage to vegetation and soils.

Avoid transferring undesirable species in the hay or haylage such as docks or rosebay willowherb.

Do not:

feed on or next to archaeological features, steep slopes, footpaths or watercourses

use troughs or feeders

If you need to supplementary feed multiple times in the winter or every year, consider reducing or removing your stock during this period.

Follow the farming rules for water (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rules-for-farmers-and-land-managers-to-prevent-water-pollution) – you’ll need to take steps to stop pollution from grazing livestock.