Scottish Rural Development Programme 2014-2020: Evaluation of Capital Grant Schemes – Main Report

10. Lessons Learned

Introduction

This final chapter identifies lessons learned from the evaluation of the capital grant schemes to inform any future grant support.

Lessons learned

• the provision of capital grants is an appropriate mechanism to support farmers and crofters, including new entrants, small farms, and those based in LFA to support modernisation, increase business viability, and support the retention of employment in rural areas.
• area staff are a valued and knowledgeable asset – they provide much needed information, support and practical help and guidance to applicants and grant recipients. It is important that they are resourced appropriately to continue to provide this service.
• the eligible project activity remains appropriate – the grant schemes have supported the type of projects that farmers and crofters needed (and continue to need) capital funding for.
• the maximum individual award size of £25,000 has been at this level for some time – there should be flexibility and discretion to make larger awards for some capital projects where the cost of inflation has made items more expensive.
• securing two or three quotes (depending on total project cost) continues to be particularly challenging for farmers and crofters in rural and remote areas – SG should continue with its efforts to introduce standard costs for some capital improvements, and to undertake regular reviews of standard costs to ensure they remain relevant and appropriate.
• SG should undertake further messaging and communication with farmers and crofters to increase awareness among grant recipients that they can submit interim claims for grant funding – this would help to ease some (but not all) of the cash-flow pressures experienced by some grant recipients.
• it is important to ensure that eligibility criteria of any new grant support schemes (or refreshed criteria for CAGS) as well as any move to an online application process do not unintentionally exclude the intended target audience.
• it will be vitally important to include and involve farmers and crofters in the design and testing of any new online application process to ensure it is easy to use, navigate and is fit for purpose.
• there should be clear and timely messaging and communication from SG about any upcoming changes to the application process and an appropriate lead-in time for the transition – there may require to be training and/or practical help and support available for some farmers and crofters.
• some farmers and crofters find the application process complicated, and some require to pay an agent to do it – the move to an online application process presents an opportunity to review the application form, questions and requirements and to explore opportunities to streamline and simplify this where appropriate.
• the provision of existing data from SG on the grant schemes to inform the evaluation was not always readily available and there were data gaps – the move to an online system should help inform data quality and completeness going forward.
• post project monitoring is limited with the exception of financial information and inspections – there is scope to improve monitoring to better capture evidence on activities, outputs, and any short-term outcomes. Evaluation can then focus on impact and learning.