Scottish Rural Development Programme 2014-2020: ex-post evaluation - main report

1. Introduction

This report presents the findings of the independent ex-post evaluation of the Scottish Rural Development Programme (SRDP) 2014-2020.

The evaluation was commissioned by the Rural and Environmental Science and Analytical Services (RESAS) Division within the Scottish Government (SG) and was undertaken by EKOS Ltd between April 2024 and November 2024.

The research was overseen by a small Research Advisory Group (RAG) comprising representatives from SG which met monthly. A larger RAG, comprising the original RAG members and additional representatives from SG, met on a more ad hoc basis at key milestones during the research.

The SRDP 2014-2020

The SRDP 2014-2020, which had a final budget of around €1.5 billion to deliver on its priorities related to the rural economy, delivered Pillar II of the European Union (EU) Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

The SRDP 2014-2020 supported various economic, environmental, and social measures for the benefit of rural Scotland and its purpose was to help achieve sustainable economic growth. The main priorities of the Programme were to:

• enhance the rural economy.
• support agricultural and forestry businesses.
• protect the natural environment.
• address the impact of climate change and support rural communities.

The SRDP 2014-2020 was submitted for approval by the European Commission (EC) in October 2014 and approved on 26 May 2015 under Commission Decision C(2015)3489.

The SRDP 2014-2020 comprised a diverse range of 15 schemes that provided grants and other forms of support (for example, advice) to individuals, businesses, and groups. Since the beginning of 2021, all SRDP 2014-2020 funded schemes were closed to new applications.

The SG Agriculture and Rural Economy Directorate is responsible for the SRDP - the Agriculture Policy Division is the Managing Authority (MA), and the Rural Payment and Inspections Division (RPID) is the Paying Agency.

The last payment run to draw down EC co-financing for SRDP 2014-2020 was 20 December 2023 to meet timescales for the final EC drawdown of funds by 29 December 2023. The co-financed Programme is now closed.

Some SRDP schemes have stopped, some have since transitioned into the new domestic programme^[3] (that is, wholly funded by SG domestic monies), some new interventions are at the pilot stage, and work is ongoing in relation to agricultural reform in Scotland.

Evaluation aims

The EC requires Rural Development Programmes (RDPs), including the SRDP 2024-2020, to be evaluated in accordance with its published guidance for ex-post evaluations. This is a formal requirement as part of the Programme’s closure.

The evaluation is required to assess the SRDP 2014-2020 against 30 Common Evaluation Questions (CEQs) which are split into three areas, covering:

• Focus Area (FA) questions – 18 questions on what was delivered under the six FAs through the SRDP schemes.
• other RDP aspects – three questions around synergies, technical assistance, and rural networks.
• EU level questions – nine questions on the extent to which the SRDP interventions have supported or contributed towards EU level targets (for example, employment rate of 20-64 year olds).

The evaluation covers the period from 26 May 2015 (this is the date the Programme was first formally approved) to 31 December 2023. There was expenditure realised prior to May 2015 from the 2014-2020 budget due to on-going commitments from the 2007-2013 Programme. The evaluation is mainly a backwards look at what has been delivered, supported, and achieved by the SRDP 2014-2020 and to meet the EC’s requirement for ex-post evaluations.

While a forward look is not a primary focus for the evaluation, the study methodology was designed to identify wider insights across the schemes and lessons learned around what worked well and less well which can inform policy development and new interventions. These findings are presented in the SRDP scheme summary document (see below).

Report structure

Our report has been structured in such a way to help SG populate and submit the EC evaluation reporting template by the end of December 2024.

Chapter 2 provides details of the evaluation methodology and research limitations. Chapter 3 presents a summary of what was delivered and achieved.

The remaining chapters of the report are structured in line with the 30 CEQs. The main body of the report also contains summary data tables on finance and performance indicators.

The detailed financial and performance data tables have been provided in a separate Microsoft Excel sheet. The EC required data tables have been populated and have also been provided in a separate Microsoft Excel sheet. This includes data tables related to:

• result/target indicators.
• complementary result indicators
• additional and programme specific indicators used to support evaluation findings.
• CAP impact indicators.

A standalone document has been prepared which provides a summary of each SRDP scheme, including lessons learned.