How to read this site

This site is a decision-aid for the eighteen Ure Dales landowners and the people connected to their decision — family, tenants, advisors, neighbours. It exists to make the scheme understandable, document where the evidence behind specific claims comes from, and give the consortium a reference repository that persists beyond the 30 April 2026 workshop.

It is written to be quoted, challenged, and improved. If something on the site is unclear or wrong, the right response is to say so — not to read past it.

• It is not marketing material. There is no sell here. Each page sets out the position with the trade-offs.
• It is not the final word. Many sections describe positions still being refined; where that is true, the page says so.
• It is not a substitute for advice. Solicitors, accountants, and land agents working with individual holdings will reach more specific answers for your own circumstances.
• It is not the legal scheme document. The sample governance document is the working version of that; the final agreement is signed after the workshop and ratification window.

Six decisions sit on the workshop agenda. Everything else on the site is in service of one or more of these. The decisions are listed in What has already been decided alongside the waypoints already passed.

1. Single Legal Entity choice. Which of the four governance options holds the DEFRA contract.
2. Surplus distribution model. Which of the five surplus-distribution models the scheme adopts.
3. Trustmark participation. Confirmation of the Bronze / Silver / Gold pathway.
4. Audit model. Pooled scheme-employed audit versus each holding contracting its own.
5. Timeline confirmation. The 20-year, five-phase pathway and review windows.
6. 4 Returns framing. Confirmation of the 4 Returns framework as the success-measurement language.

A 14-day ratification window after the workshop ends 14 May 2026. No permanent decision lands on the day.

The main areas of the site, and what each is for:

• Governance — the four SLE options, the comparison scorecard, the sample governance document, the Consortium charter, what an individual landowner’s relationship with the scheme looks like, and why the SLE is asset-locked.
• Surplus distribution — the five models for handling scheme surplus, with a page per model and the trade-offs each carries.
• Trustmark — the producer assurance attached to the scheme, the three tiers, the audit model, and what each tier is worth.
• Landowners — the case for joining, three worked example holdings, tenanted-holding consent and income mechanics, and what individual landowners are signing up to.
• Points to consider — technical and regulatory pages on LRS payments, carbon credits, BNG, nutrient neutrality, public access, sporting rights, stacking guidance, trustmark scoring, and the income calculator.
• Resources — the six DEFRA plans, the nature-markets pages, the cost recovery model, the methodology, and the verified external sources hub.
• Decisions — the live record of decisions reached, what has already been decided, what is open on 30 April, and what is still being confirmed externally.
• FAQ, For families, For advisors, Risk register, Workshop materials, Glossary — supporting reference material.

There is no required reading order. Three useful starting points depending on what you arrive with:

• If you want the shortest route through: summary, then workshop preparation.
• If your concern is the governance choice: governance overview, then the four option pages, then the comparison.
• If your concern is what changes on your holding: landowner benefits, then three example holdings, then the income calculator for your own figures.