Morning, Tuesday, 15th July 2025
Online
This conference will examine next steps for managing England’s natural capital.
It will focus on strategic and practical priorities for addressing biodiversity loss and improving ecosystem resilience, and what will be needed to meet sustainability goals across a range of sectors, including agriculture, forestry, marine and freshwater management, urban planning, tourism, and energy.
The conference follows the publication of the Government’s UK Infrastructure: 10 Year Strategy and the Spending Review 2025, which outlined a renewed focus from government on integrating natural capital into long-term growth and investment planning. It also comes with concerns surrounding the long-term investment in natural capital, following announcement of allocations in the Spending Review to agriculture, nature restoration and flood resilience.
The conference will bring together stakeholders and policymakers to discuss the Nature Restoration Fund, which is being introduced as part of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill with the aim of a shift towards habitat restoration through Environmental Delivery Plans, with a broader focus than site-specific mitigation.
Policy, Environmental Delivery Plans, infrastructure development and protecting nature
Delegates will assess how EDPs will need to be developed and implemented if they are to deliver more cohesive environmental outcomes while providing a more predictable framework for development. Areas for discussion include practicalities of aligning development with environmental protection, integrating scientific rigour in project planning, and setting clear timelines and safeguards for protected species.
Identifying and addressing key ecosystem risks
Delegates will also discuss key findings and policy implications from Natural England’s State of Natural Capital Report for England 2024 and Strategic Direction 2025-2030 report, including key areas of risk and priority actions moving forward.
These include the way forward for addressing risks to essential ecosystem services affecting air and water quality as highlighted in the report, alongside degraded ecosystems requiring urgent action. Delegates will also examine broader challenges in climate regulation, and practical steps for integrating natural capital considerations into decision-making. We expect discussion on the approach outlined in the Strategic Direction to nature recovery, with its recommendations on accelerating progress, addressing root causes of environmental decline, and increasing the effectiveness and integration into planning and development of nature restoration and conservation.
Delegates will also consider how to align the Government’s 30by30 commitment with existing frameworks such as Environmental Land Management schemes and Biodiversity Net Gain. We expect discussion to reflect questions around regulatory consistency, the proposed nature levy under the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, and proposals to minimise BNG requirements for small and medium developments, including concerns raised about the potential for this approach to reduce on-site ecological assessments and compensation, and weaken habitat protections.
Agriculture and mitigating climate impact
Further sessions will explore the way forward in response to the United Kingdom Food Security Report 2024, which highlighted significant climate-related impacts on domestic production, including a 22% fall in wheat yields. Implications for land use, ecosystem services, and supporting farmers will be discussed, along with how loss of confidence among farmers might be addressed following the closure of the Sustainable Farming Incentive scheme, and strategies for rebuilding trust and stability in agriculture policy, amid concerns surrounding funding recently announced for the agriculture sector in the Spending Review 2025.
Land use, water resource management, international standards and innovation
Attendees will also examine ELM practices, including concerns over underutilised natural regeneration in woodland creation, and recent government engagement with large landowners to advance 2030 nature targets in the Environment Act 2021. Delegates will consider the role of high-integrity carbon and nature credits in meeting these targets, as well as priorities for coordination on international standards.
Further sessions will focus on improving water resource management, including nature-based and catchment-based strategies, alongside innovation in addressing quality and scarcity. Delegates will assess next steps to accelerate habitat restoration, strengthen ecological resilience, and ensure accountability in the delivery of nature recovery across sectors. This will include addressing public concerns about the potential use of compulsory land acquisition powers by Natural England for rewilding and nature reserve creation.
Funding and investment
Delegates will consider developments in public and private investment in protecting and restoring natural capital. Sessions will assess the utility of funding recently announced in the Spending Review across agriculture, woodlands, and flood and coastal resilience and its interaction with public-private nature markets, including the NRF.
Sessions will explore ways to improve the integrity of nature markets to bolster confidence and secure private sector investment following the Environmental Audit Committee’s report on natural capital in the green economy and recommendations from the Nature Markets Dialogue. Approaches to balancing public and private funding will be assessed, including the role of compliance mechanisms in boosting private involvement, and governance mechanisms needed to ensure robust regulation, market stability, and genuine environmental gains.
Overall areas for discussion include:
- Nature Restoration Fund:
- the Planning and Infrastructure Bill - supporting habitat restoration through Environmental Delivery Plans - aligning development with environmental protection
- integrating scientific rigour in project planning - clear timelines and safeguards for protected species
- Natural Capital Reports:
- key findings and next steps following reports from Natural England and the Environmental Audit Committee - identifying actionable insights for policy - integrating environmental, economic and community needs
- biodiversity goals:
- aligning the Government’s 30by30 commitment with ELM schemes and BNG frameworks - responding to proposals such as the nature levy
- balancing competing land use priorities - addressing concerns over reduced habitat protection and on-site assessments
- sustainable food systems:
- reviewing the UK Food Security Report 2024 - responding to climate impact on agricultural productivity - sustainable production and farmer participation - rebuilding trust after SFI scheme closure
- water resource management:
- advancing catchment-based approaches - implementing nature-based solutions - addressing water scarcity and quality challenges - incorporating stakeholder views on land use and rights
- climate adaptation strategies:
- improving ecosystem resilience against climate impact - developing natural capital for long-term sustainability - funding and investment priorities - ensuring accountability in nature restoration
- habitat restoration:
- progress of ongoing restoration projects - integrating natural regeneration in woodland strategies
- practical steps for species protection and alignment with land use planning - addressing concerns over land rights and compulsory purchase powers
- community and stakeholder engagement:
- delivering inclusive participation in natural capital decisions - restoration targets - addressing rural and urban disparities - transparent communication and building trust
- policy coordination:
- environmental, agricultural and planning aims - overlaps and regulatory tensions - joined-up decision-making - integrating international standards for nature markets
- investment:
- funding opportunities and frameworks to support natural capital initiatives - evaluating roles of private and public sectors
- developing high-integrity nature and carbon markets to mobilise private investment
- developing long-term economic and ecological sustainability - ensuring clear standards to prevent offshoring environmental impacts
- monitoring and accountability:
- tracking biodiversity and habitat outcomes - reporting transparency - systems for evaluating progress - delivering greater transparency and rigorous oversight
All delegates will be able to contribute to the output of the conference, which will be shared with parliamentary, ministerial, departmental and regulatory offices, and more widely. This includes the full proceedings and additional articles submitted by delegates. As well as key stakeholders, those due to attend include parliamentary pass-holders from both Houses of Parliament, and officials from DESNZ; MHCLG; DfT; DBT; MoD; Ofwat; NAO; ONS; NISTA; HoC Library; Homes England; DAFM, ROI; Isle of Man Government; and the Welsh Government.
