Ensure that farmers and crofters can access tools, information and advice necessary to produce an integrated biodiversity audit as part of the Whole Farm Plan as a requirement of basic payments tier 1 support.
Objective 3: Embed nature positive Farming, Fishing and Forestry
Priority Action 15. Introduce an agricultural support framework which delivers for nature restoration and biodiversity alongside climate and food production outcomes
Guidance and advisory support for Whole Farm Plan requirements are available through Scottish Government rural support systems and associated advisory services. The biodiversity component of the Whole Farm Plan currently focuses primarily on completing a basic biodiversity/habitat mapping exercise rather than a fully standardised ecological audit framework.
Implementation is in an early delivery phase, with uptake dependent on farmer engagement and advisory access. Evidence from agricultural advisory systems indicates that awareness and participation can vary significantly, particularly among smaller farms and crofts where capacity and access to advisory services may be more limited.
There is currently no established national monitoring system that links completion of biodiversity mapping or audit activities within Whole Farm Plans to measurable changes in habitat condition, species outcomes, or wider biodiversity indicators. As a result, the ecological effectiveness of audit completion cannot yet be assessed at system level.
Biodiversity audits and habitat mapping are recognised within Scottish biodiversity policy as important baseline tools for understanding land management impacts and identifying opportunities for habitat improvement. These tools can support better targeting of management interventions where they are effectively used.
NatureScot evidence on biodiversity monitoring highlights that habitat mapping and condition assessment are useful for establishing baselines but require follow-up management actions and long-term monitoring to deliver ecological improvements. Without this linkage, audits primarily function as information tools rather than direct drivers of biodiversity recovery.
SEFARI and SRUC research indicates that farm-level biodiversity data collection can support improved decision-making, but ecological outcomes depend on integration into management systems and sustained implementation of recommended actions.
State of Nature Scotland continues to report long-term declines in biodiversity across multiple habitats and species groups, including farmland systems, indicating that current approaches to monitoring and assessment have not yet translated into measurable ecological recovery at national scale.
Overall, the introduction of biodiversity audit requirements within the Whole Farm Plan represents a positive structural step toward embedding biodiversity considerations in agricultural support. However, current implementation is limited to baseline mapping, with no established mechanism linking audits to verified ecological outcomes or management change. This means the ecological contribution remains indirect and not yet measurable at system level.
Scottish Government – Whole Farm Plan
Farm Advisory Service – Biodiversity Guidance
SEFARI
SRUC
State of Nature Scotland
In 2025, as part of eligibility requirement for Basic Payment Scheme, businesses must undertake two from the following five baselines: biodiversity audit, carbon audit, soil analysis, animal health and welfare plan and integrated pest management plan as part of a revised rural payments process that encourages Nature Positive activities.
Implement actions specifically benefitting farmland species as part of ongoing support and the new agricultural payments framework backed by advisory support including new greening requirements which will be introduced in 2026 and form part of the enhanced tier of the future framework.
In 2025 there will be new peatland and wetland standards under Cross Compliance which will prohibit a range of activities from being carried out on peatland and wetland areas. We will continue to develop rural support mechanisms to incorporate further requirements to protect and enhance soil health, promote control of soil erosion/compaction and maintain / enhance soil organic matter through…
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