Credit Scheme
Cumbria Nutrient Credit Scheme
The Cumbria Nutrient Credit Scheme has been created to help unlock development across the four affected river catchments in Cumbria by ensuring that new housing and tourist accommodation do not add to nutrient levels in sensitive river catchments.
Through the purchase of nutrient mitigation credits, developers and applicants will be able to demonstrate that their proposals achieve Nutrient Neutrality, supporting environmental protection while enabling sustainable growth. Credits will remove the burden of identifying nutrient mitigation solutions and the subsequent long-term maintenance and monitoring.
This page provides information about how the scheme works, the types of credits available, and what to expect from the application and purchasing process.
From 29th April 2026, the scheme will run a pre-application stage.
This is to enable developers and applicants to familiarise themselves with the guidance and information required ahead of the scheme’s launch.
It is also an opportunity for developers to review their development proposals and agree any changes to the calculated nutrient mitigation requirements with the planning case officer for their planning application.
The scheme will formally open for credit purchase applications on 1st June 2026.
Full details on credit pricing, eligibility, and next steps are provided below.
Credit Prices
- 1 Credit is equal to 1kg Phosphorus/year.
- Credits will be sold in increments of 0.01kg to ensure applicants can purchase the exact amount of mitigation required.
- 1 Temporary Credit = £7,500 + £2,500 service fee (excl. VAT)
- 1 Permanent Credit = £25,500 + £2,500 service fee (excl. VAT)
Explanatory Note: The credit price comprises a ‘base cost’ and ‘service fee’. For clarity, the price of 1 Temporary Credit (1 kg P) is £10,000 exc. VAT (base cost £7,500 + service fee £2,500). The price of 1 Permanent Credit is £28,000 exc. VAT (base cost £25,500 + service fee £2,500).
Worked example: A developer requires 1.5 Temporary credits and 0.5 Permanent credits.
1.5 Temporary credits: £10,000 x 1.5 = £15,000 exc. VAT
0.5 Permanent credits: £28,000 x 0.5 = £14,000 exc. VAT
Total cost: £29,000 exc. VAT.
The price of credits will be reviewed regularly and are subject to change.
Credit Availability
Credits will be available across all four Cumbrian Nutrient Neutrality catchments. The availability of credits across the catchments and sub-catchments is as follows:
Eligibility to Purchase
To be eligible to apply to buy credits, development must:
- Be within an affected nutrient catchments or sub catchments where credits are available, and;
- Be linked to an active planning application. This is to ensure that credits are not bought speculatively and then not used.
Check which catchment your development is located within using the catchment maps.
Approved developments with an agreed and legally secured, but not yet implemented, nutrient mitigation solution are not eligible to buy credits.
Expression of Interest
Credit sales will begin on 1st June 2026. On this date, please return to this page to fill out the application form to purchase credits and begin mitigating your development.
Ahead of this, if you intend to buy credits please email us at info@cumbriann.co.uk with the title Expression of Interest in Credits, and include details of your planning application and anticipated credit requirements. This will help us understand the demand for credits and may speed up future allocation.
Get Prepared
Potential buyers are asked to review the information below on the credit purchase process and requirements. Use the time between now and the start of credit sales to check all your nutrient neutrality information is correct and up to date, including confirming your anticipated credit requirement with the LPA case officer for your application.
Missing or incorrect information may slow down your application.
To apply for credits, applicants must complete the online application form which will be available on this page when the scheme goes live for credit sales. The following key information will be required:
- Information about your planning application and site location;
- Nutrient Neutrality Catchment (and sub-catchment, where appropriate);
- A completed Natural England Nutrient Neutrality Calculator (using the latest calculator and the correct occupancy rate as below);
- Nutrient load and number of credits being applied for;
- Any existing mitigation strategy being considered;
- Your contact details.
Occupancy Rate
The Cumbria Nutrient Neutrality partnership recently commissioned a new review of available information on housing and population within the four catchments. As a result of this, new occupancy rates have been adopted with effect from 1st May 2026.
The table below shows the rates that should now be used when calculating the nutrient load for new housing developments. Please note that there are some small differences depending on the Local Planning Authority. Please ensure that the correct occupancy rate is used when calculating your development’s nutrient load and credit requirement.
Submit your Credit Application
When you have completed the application form, press <submit> to submit your application. Once the application is received we will then:
- Acknowledge receipt of your application by email within 2 working days.
- Request supporting information to be provided, including your Nutrient Neutrality Assessment Report and completed Natural England nutrient calculator.
- Review and validate information, including making checks with the relevant Planning Case Officer.
- Notify you if there are sufficient credits available to purchase and the purchase price. Credits will be provisionally allocated to your application. If there are insufficient available credits, you will be added to a waiting list and notified as and when additional credits become available.
Reserve or Purchase
There are two options available for those who wish to obtain nutrient credits to mitigate their development:
Option 1: Reserve credits for up to 6 months
Pay a 15% deposit to reserve an allocation of credits for your development. You then have 6 months within which to secure planning consent for your development.
Once there is a resolution to grant consent by the planning authority or a decision pending completion of the purchase of credits, the outstanding balance will become payable and must be settled within 5 business days to secure the credits and obtain planning consent
If, at the end of the 6 month reservation period, planning consent is either refused, not granted, or the planning application is withdrawn, the credits will be released for allocation to other developments. The deposit will will be returned, minus the service fee of the lesser of 10% of the deposit, or £2,500.
Option 2: Purchase credits in full
Where Nutrient Neutrality is the only remaining obstacle to obtaining planning consent and/or you already have a resolution to grant consent subject to nutrient neutrality mitigation being confirmed, you can opt to pay the full purchase price upon receiving confirmation that sufficient credits are available.
Once payment is made, the credits will be secured and allocated to the development.
Notice: all credits purchased through the Cumbria Nutrient Credit Scheme are non-transferrable. Under certain conditions, other than where credits have been reserved and the reservation period expires, the Scheme will buy back credits that are no longer required. Further details of the buy-back options are contained within the Credit Purchase Agreement.
Frequently Asked Questions
For more information about how the credit scheme works or how to purchase credits, please click below.
