What is a DEFRA Approved Responsible Body for Conservation Covenants?

Conservation Covenant Services Ltd is proud to be a Defra-approved responsible body for conservation covenants in England. This designation empowers us to enter into legally binding agreements that secure long-term environmental protection for landowners and developers alike.

Understanding Conservation Covenants

Conservation covenants are private, voluntary agreements between a landowner and a responsible body to protect or enhance the natural environment or heritage features of land. Enabled by Part 7 of the Environment Act 2021, these covenants bind current and future landowners, ensuring commitments like habitat restoration or restricting harmful activities persist indefinitely unless specified otherwise. Unlike traditional restrictive covenants, they allow positive obligations, such as active land management, making them versatile for biodiversity net gain (BNG) and ecosystem services.

They must serve the public good and have a conservation purpose, covering natural resources, habitats, or sites of archaeological, architectural, historic, artistic, or cultural interest. For instance, a landowner might agree to maintain woodland to prevent flooding downstream, receiving payment in return, with the covenant registered as a local land charge for enforceability.

Role of a Defra-Approved Responsible Body

A Defra-approved responsible body is the only entity authorised to create these covenants, acting as the enforcer and monitor. We draft agreements, register them, conduct inspections, and resolve disputes to ensure compliance. Ongoing duties include submitting annual returns to Defra on covenant numbers, land areas, habitats, and outcomes by 31 March each year.

If a body fails to meet the rigorous standards, Defra can revoke designation, with the Secretary of State stepping in as custodian.

Defra Approval Criteria

Defra rigorously assesses applicants across four pillars: eligibility, financial security, operational capacity, and ongoing suitability. Eligibility requires a UK base and conservation-related purposes or activities.

Financial checks verify a UK bank account, stability, and no recent insolvency or late filings via Companies House. Operationally, we demonstrate expertise (e.g., ecologists), workforce for monitoring/enforcement, governance, and contingency plans.

Commitment to Environmental Improvements

At Conservation Covenant Services Ltd, our designation as a Defra-approved responsible body reflects a deep commitment to driving measurable environmental improvements across England. We prioritise projects that deliver tangible biodiversity gains, habitat restoration, and ecosystem resilience, aligning with national and regional goals. By embedding science-led monitoring and adaptive management into every covenant, we ensure not just protection but active enhancement of natural capital, from rewilding meadows to creating wildlife corridors that support pollinators and soil health. This hands-on approach turns legal agreements into catalysts for thriving ecosystems, benefiting wildlife, communities, and future generations.

Landscape-Scale Strategies

Our covenants extend beyond individual sites to tie into landscape-scale strategies for wider environmental benefit. We collaborate with landowners to connect habitats across farms, woodlands, and rivers, creating resilient networks that amplify conservation impact—think linking South Downs grasslands to coastal wetlands for species migration. This strategic focus supports initiatives like Nature Recovery Strategies and ELM schemes, enabling cumulative gains such as flood mitigation over catchments or carbon sequestration at a regional level. By scaling up protections, we foster biodiversity corridors that deliver public goods far beyond site boundaries, enhancing landscape connectivity and long-term sustainability.

Benefits for Landowners and Developers

For landowners, covenants secure income via payments for ecosystem services or BNG units without selling land. Developers use them for mandatory 10% BNG under the Environment Act, off-site units via approved bodies like ours.

Stakeholder	Key Benefits
Landowners	Ongoing payments; legacy protection; no land sale needed.
Developers	BNG compliance; off-site unit market access.
Environment	Long-term habitat security; bng net gain delivery.

Conservation Covenants or Section 106 Agreements?

Conservation covenants offer a compelling alternative to Section 106 agreements for securing biodiversity net gain (BNG) due to their flexibility, permanence, and independence from the planning system. Unlike Section 106 agreements, which must involve a local planning authority (LPA) and tie directly to a specific development permission, conservation covenants are entered with a Defra-approved responsible body like ours, enabling habitat banks that supply BNG units to multiple developers across boundaries without repeated LPA negotiations.

They can also run indefinitely if required—beyond the 30-year BNG minimum—providing stronger, perpetual protection for enhanced habitats, while Section 106 obligations, though binding, are more bureaucratic, prone to delays, and limited by LPA resources for long-term monitoring. This makes covenants ideal for strategic, off-site BNG delivery, reducing complexity for landowners creating scalable units and ensuring robust enforcement through specialised bodies rather than overstretched councils.

Application Process and Ongoing Duties

Post-approval, register covenants on local land charges and notify tenants if applicable.gov+1

Responsible bodies monitor via surveys/inspections, resolve breaches informally or via court, and report changes like financial shifts immediately.

Real-World Impact and Future Outlook

Since 2022, covenants support BNG (mandatory since 2024), landscape recovery, and altruistic protection. Private bodies like ours fill key gaps for developers. With growing uptake, especially for BNG sites, they complement payments for ecosystems and rewilding. As BNG evolves, expect more covenants securing 30-year+ commitments.

Why Partner with Conservation Covenant Services?

As a Defra-approved body, we specialise in BNG delivery and covenant management for developers and landowners. Our Chichester team offers tailored agreements, monitoring, and compliance support. We're renowned for a practical approach to agreements, the expertise of our full in house team, who will deliver fast turnarounds when you need them. Contact us at info@conservationcovenant.org.uk or 07341 559 608 to discuss securing your conservation legacy.