The Improvement Programme for England’s Natura 2000 Sites (IPENS) is developing a suite of eleven Theme Plans. These Plans will address the issues that impact on, and affect the condition of, multiple Natura 2000 sites and which are difficult to resolve on a site-by-site basis. The project has identified the need for a Theme Plan on Grazing.
A high percentage of Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) / Special Protection Area (SPA) sites are affected by grazing as an issue. In the latest round of Article 17 reporting inappropriate grazing was cited as the second most frequently reported pressure or threat to Natura 2000 habitats and species. A technical workshop was held on 13 September 2013, considered how to improve grazing outcomes for habitat conservation.