Budget with a Bang! Could you ‘energise’ your succession planning?

Many landowners and renewables developers will be analysing and grappling with Labour’s budget and how it impacts them and their businesses.

For landowners, this budget has been brutal. The biggest concern for many, is the Agricultural & Business Property Relief being limited to £1m – causing potential issues for succession plans.

For Renewable Developers, some commentators have described it as giving with one hand and taking with another.

Whether a landowner or a developer, this budget will impact most. More than ever now, businesses require to be proactive, enterprising and adapt to change.

The Farmers Weekly recently noted that renewable energy is now the most popular farm diversification enterprise (8% of farmers). More farmers are looking to diversify further as farm income falls but it can also be a good alternative for succession planning. It’s also a diversification that does not involve bringing the public onto the farm, like many tourism or retail options, which can be attractive for some.

With many years of experience in working with landowners and renewables developers and diversification on our own farm, at Renewables Connect we have seen where there is opportunity to think differently about succession planning.

Some listers are coming to us as they are rethinking succession and how they can create an income that will help support the next generation or allow for assets to be split.

From speaking to landowners and farmers across the UK, we know there is sometimes trepidation about renewable projects, either from previous experience of a lot of time invested for an agreement not to conclude, or fear of Wild West, both unnavigable and hard to know who to trust. Our aim at Renewables Connect is to create some transparency around this – to establish a market-leading centralised, independent and standalone platform, where both parties can clearly see options and opportunities. The more listings and subscribers that sign up to be part of this, the greater the prospects for all.