About Us

RPA was established on 16 October 2001 as an Executive Agency of the Department for Environment. RPA is a major delivery body for Defra, providing a range of services in support of the department’s objectives. The key services we provide are making rural payments, carrying out rural inspections, and livestock tracing. We are based at six main locations in England: Reading, Carlisle, Exeter, Newcastle, Northallerton and Workington.

Our Mission

To be a customer focused organisation delivering high quality services, including processing payments and receipts, conducting inspections and recording animal identification, to government and the rural community.

Procurement in the RPA

With our commitment to progressive thinking and the search for continuous improvement we want to develop a modern, pro-active and extremely strategic approach to procurement. This focus will develop our procurement function into a formidable section of our business striving to achieve substantial savings and exceptional value for money. With success and growth comes opportunity and with these opportunities comes a chance to join a leading team in its continued expansion.

Our purpose

RPA is an Executive Agency of Defra. We are a major, customer facing delivery Agency for Defra providing a range of services including: claim processing, making payments, collecting receipts, accounting for financial transactions, carrying out inspections, recording animal movements and maintaining information on land, livestock and customers.

RPA contributes to Defra’s Departmental Strategic Objectives and targets, particularly the promotion of sustainable, diverse, modern and adaptable farming.

RPA is the accredited Paying Agency for the CAP within England. For direct subsidy payments, such as SPS, our role includes both processing claims and making payments.

For schemes under the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE), which are aimed at supporting rural communities to develop and diversify, while delivering environmental and sustainability benefits; claim processing is mainly carried out by other bodies such as Natural England, the Forestry Commission and Regional Development Agencies. We make and account for all payments within European Union (EU) rules and regulations.

For the CAP trader schemes we have Paying Agency responsibility across the whole of the United Kingdom (UK).

RPA is also responsible for some animal tracing activities on behalf of Defra and its network of agencies, including the issuing of cattle passports and the recording of cattle movements.

Our inspectors support our customers to comply with regulations.