Improve Animal Health and Welfare

Payments are available for farmers in England for vet visits and diagnostic testing to reduce endemic diseases, improve productivity, and raise welfare standards across herds and flocks. It is part of the wider Animal Health and Welfare Pathway. The grant provides direct payments to livestock keepers to cover the cost of these vet visits.

- Funding organisation: Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Location: England - Award: N/A to N/A per award; total scheme size N/A - Opening date: 2025-07-30 - Closing date: 2027-06-20

Summary

There are 2 parts to the service:

- animal health and welfare review - endemic disease follow-up

You can choose the vet you want to do these. The review and follow-up are not an inspection or audit. If you are a farmer who is a vet, you cannot carry out your own visit, you must use another vet. As part of your IAHW agreement, you can have up to:

- 3 reviews on any number of herds or flocks of one or more species from the list of eligible livestock – beef cattle, dairy cattle, pigs or sheep - 3 follow-ups on any number of herds or flocks of one or more species from the list of eligible livestock – beef cattle, dairy cattle, pigs or sheep

Animal health and welfare review During a review, the vet will:

- test for endemic disease (for cattle and pigs) - test the effectiveness of medicines to treat worms (for sheep) - advise you on how to improve animal health and welfare - advise you on how to increase animal productivity - discuss any other topics that are important to you

After the vet has completed a review, you can choose to have an endemic disease follow-up.

Endemic disease follow-up You can only do a follow-up on a herd or flock after you have done a review. You may also prefer to claim successfully for the review before you organise a follow-up. The follow-up must be on the same species as the review.During a follow-up, the vet will:

- do more in-depth disease testing based on your review results (cattle and pigs) - do disease testing or condition assessments based on farm health priorities (sheep) - do a biosecurity assessment

The vet will also advise you on further steps to:

- control and prevent disease - improve animal health and welfare - improve animal productivity

Payment Rates

Funding is per species, not per animal. Payments cover diagnostic testing, the vet’s time, and the farmer’s time.You can claim up to 3 reviews and 3 follow‑ups per species before June 2027.

Funding available is dependant on species with seperate payments for the Review and follow ups. For full detail of the funding available for your specific herd or flock please see GOV.UK

www.gov.uk/guidance/farmers-how-to-apply-for-funding-to-improve-animal-health-and-welfare

Eligibility

Meet minimum livestock numbers -

You need at least:

- 11 beef cattle - 11 dairy cattle - 21 sheep - 51 pigs

These minimum numbers must be present each time the vet visits.

Livestock must be registered in England

- You can only claim for animals kept in England.

You must have a valid SBI and CPHYour business must have:

- A Single Business Identifier (SBI) - Linked to a County Parish Holding (CPH) number registered in England

CPH numbers not eligible:

- 8,000 series (abattoirs, pet food manufacturers, racing pigeon sites, showgrounds) - 9,000 series (poultry keepers)

You must be responsible for animal welfare on the holdingYou need to be the person who is legally responsible for caring for the livestock at the time of the vet visit.The review must be done by an external vetIf you are a farmer who is also a vet, you cannot conduct your own review you must use another vet.

- You can claim for one or more species, but funding is paid per species, not per animal. - Follow-ups must be on the same species as the initial review.

Total allowable reviewsUnder your IAHW agreement, you can have:

- Up to 3 reviews per species - Up to 3 follow-ups per speciesAll must be completed by 19 June 2027, and claims submitted by 19 September 2027.

Objectives

The scheme aims to:

- Reduce endemic disease through diagnostic testing and vet advice. - Improve animal health and welfare as part of the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway - Strengthen farm biosecurity. - Increase productivity and resilience through healthier livestock.

Dates

The service ends on 19 June 2027. Your review and follow-up visits must be done by then. You must submit your claims by 19 September 2027.

How to apply

Apply for funding to improve animal health and welfare on GOV.UK

www.gov.uk/guidance/farmers-how-to-apply-for-funding-to-improve-animal-health-and-welfare

This is the online service where you:

- Sign in using your Rural Payments CRN and password - Start an Improve Animal Health and Welfare (IAHW) agreement - Book and claim for your funded vet visit

Applying takes around 5 minutes, and the form is fully online.

Apply / more information: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/farmers-how-to-apply-for-funding-to-improve-animal-health-and-welfare