Infrastructure and Equipment: using RPW Online to apply

This guide explains how to complete the Infrastructure and Equipment Nutrient Management application. 

Customer Contact Centre

If you are encountering problems or are unable to access your RPW Online account, please contact the Customer Contact Centre where staff are on hand to provide information and answer queries.

You can use the "Messages" page in your RPW Online account to send an enquiry to the Customer Contact Centre. Alternatively, you can call on 0300 062 5004 (open Monday to Friday 9am to 4pm.

If you have applied for Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) Universal Layer the application is available through the SFS Optional Layer Dashboard located in the Sustainable Farming Scheme, drop down on your RPW Online home page. 

Choose the category that you wish to apply for and click continue which will take you to the "Start Application" page, click on the start button to start the application.

If you have not applied for the SFS Universal Layer the application is available under the forms list on your RPW Online home page. Select the application you wish to apply for and click on the start button to start the application.

Note that if you have previously started an application and saved your progress without submitting, the button will change to "Continue Application". If you are continuing an application, the system will offer you the choice to continue from where you previously left off or start again. If you wish to start again, please follow the on-screen instructions.

The application will show your Customer Reference Number (CRN) at the top left corner of the page. 

The left side of the screen shows the pages available in the application. The currently active page will be highlighted in blue. You may click a page to move directly to that page or click the "Next" / "Previous" buttons to move between pages. Pages requiring data entry will be marked with a red cross or a green tick. The red cross signifies incomplete data entry on that page, whereas a green tick indicates that all required information has been successfully entered.

A number of buttons are shown on screen to help with navigation of the application as follows:

• "Help" should assistance be required with completion of the form
• "Print" to print a copy of the form in its current state
• "Cymraeg"/"English" to switch between languages
• "Save" to save your current progress
• "Next" to move to the next page in the list
• "Previous" to move to the previous page in the list
• "Exit" to save and exit the form

The "Introduction" page summarises key information of the application you are submitting. Please pay particular attention to the key messages in this area as they may change from category to category. Click "Next" to move to the next page.

The "Privacy Notice" page outlines how we handle personal data relating to grant applications and funding requests. It explains how we process submitted information for eligibility, fraud prevention, and identity verification. It also details how data may be shared with regulatory authorities and fraud prevention agencies, retention periods for personal information, and individuals' rights under data protection laws. After viewing, click "Next" to move to the next page.

This page will only display if you are applying as a non SFS customer.

You are eligible to apply if:

• you are registered with the Welsh Government and have been issued with a Customer Reference Number (CRN). Please refer to our website for the how to register guidance or call the RPW Customer Contact Centre on 0300 062 5004
• you are a primary producer of agricultural products
• you have 3ha of eligible agricultural land registered with RPW in Wales, or
• you are able to demonstrate over 550 standard labour hours

Follow the on screen instructions to complete the eligibility questions.

You must complete a project plan. The project plan is a standard template that has up to nine headings. 

The information provided under each heading will be used in the assessment process.

Please note that if further information is required this may delay the assessment of your application, so we recommend you follow the guidance carefully in order to provide the information requested. 

Please follow on-screen instructions for completion of each heading.

Suitability of investment 

The "Suitability of Investment" page is where you will need to provide details to enable the evaluation of the appropriateness of the investment.   

Please follow on-screen instructions.

Items/value for money 

This page is where you will provide information of the project costs and quotes.

The maximum grant award is £50,000. The minimum grant award is £12,000. Welsh Government will fund a maximum of either 40% or 50% of the cost of each item and the total grant cost is capped at £50,000.

Please follow the on-screen instructions to add the items that you wish to apply for. Refer to the technical guidance for further information about the items.

For items with a value of less than £1,000 no quote is required, for items with a value between £1,000 and £4,999 1 quote or estimate is required and for items with a value of £5,000 or greater 3 quotes or estimates are required.   

If you have obtained quotes at the time of submitting this application, you must also submit the supporting evidence for those quotes. If you have not obtained quotes at the time of submitting the application, you will be asked to provide an estimated value. Please follow on-screen instructions.

It should be noted that if you do not submit required evidence of the quotes at the time of submitting the application you will need to do so prior to submitting any claims.  

You must refer to and comply with the Welsh Government Competitive Tendering and Public Procurement Technical Guidance Notes.

Appraisal checks of all quotes submitted will include the following: 

• compliance with Welsh Government Competitive Tendering and Public Procurement procedures and requirements
• reasonableness of costs 
• reason and rational provided by the applicant if the cheapest supplier is not the preferred quote
• comparability and timeliness of quotes
• further investigation with applicant and/or supplier by Welsh Government if any risk or anomaly is identified during appraisal

For some items you must select a location of the item on the map provided. To do this, you should select a parcel by either entering a parcel reference number in the search bar, or by zooming in and clicking on a parcel on the map. Please follow on-screen instructions.

For some items you will be required to submit evidence that you have applied for planning permission and/or an engineer’s report. Please follow on-screen instructions. 

Delivery – project delivery 

The "Delivery – Project Delivery" page is where you will provide a plan of the work that you intend to undertake.   

Please follow on-screen instructions.

Delivery – risk and risk management 

The "Delivery - Risk and Risk Management" page is where you will use a table to set out a summary of at least the top five risks that might affect the delivery of the project and the achievement of outputs and objectives of the project.

Please follow on-screen instructions.

Long term sustainability 

The "Long Term Sustainability" page is where you will be required to explain the impact the investment will have on the long term sustainability of the business. 

Please follow on-screen instructions.

Financial and compliance

You will need to provide your explanation and supporting evidence of the following: 

• financial position of the business, to include financial overheads and turnover, issues and concerns
• how the project will be funded in addition to any award of grant
• trading outlook and how the financial performance of the business will be impacted by the investment
• evidence that the investment and any subsequent planned investment will save money or decrease costs and any benefits that it would bring to the existing business
• how the business will be more profitable and that profit is sufficient for the future i.e. profit in relation to cash needs
• evidence provided that demonstrates that, without grant, the project would not proceed

Please follow on-screen instructions.

Cross cutting themes 

The "Cross Cutting Themes" page is where you will provide an explanation as to how the Project contributes to the cross cutting themes: 

• equality of opportunity and gender mainstreaming
• tackling poverty and social exclusion
• Welsh language

Please follow on-screen instructions.

The "Checklist of Supporting Documents" page is a list of all documents that you are required to submit with your application, along with a list of some of the other documents you may need to submit to support your application depending on the items selected.

You must select at least one method of supporting document submission in order to proceed to the next page.

When you have finished selecting your answer, select the “Next” button.

This page summarises the data you have entered into your application. Any errors found within the data will be listed at the top of this page and the location of those errors will be indicated in the menu with a red cross against each page. You must correct any errors before you can submit the application.

Information messages may also be shown on this page. These are to prompt you on any action you may need to take, but do not prevent you from submitting your application.

When you are content that all data entered is correct, click "Next" to move to the "Declarations and Undertakings" page.

This page lists the declarations and undertakings you must agree to when applying. Please read this page thoroughly to confirm your understanding of the guidance, compliance category requirements, the need to retain documentation, and the requirement for co-operation with any inspections required. You also guarantee that the provided information is accurate.

Tick the box at the bottom labelled "I have read and agree to the above Declarations and Undertakings" and click "Next" to go to the submit page.

Note that if you do not agree to the declarations and undertakings, you will not be able to submit your application.

Your application is now ready for submission. Please click the "Submit" button.

If supporting documentation is required to be submitted at application stage you can do this by clicking the "Submit Documentation" button on the next screen after you have clicked "Submit". Please refer to the guidance for further information on supporting documentation requirements.

After submission, a summary document containing details of the submitted information will be added to your messages area.