đź“Ť WSP Offices, Leeds
đź“… Wednesday 4 February 2026
The Natural Flood Management Community of Practice (CoP) came together for an in-person event sponsored by WSP, focused on Green Finance Mechanisms for NFM. The session brought practitioners together to explore emerging finance models, share delivery experience from across Yorkshire and beyond, and identify what’s needed to make green finance more credible, accessible and scalable for NFM and wider nature-based solutions.
🔍 What we covered
Morning sessions:
A series of short inputs and facilitated discussion explored:
- Current and emerging green finance routes relevant to NFM
- Practical considerations for delivery (what works well and where it is difficult)
- Lessons from real projects and partnership approaches
Afternoon breakout discussions:
Participants joined facilitated breakout discussions on three finance vehicles:
- Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
- Credit markets
- Payments for Ecosystem Services
Groups captured positive experiences, shared challenges, and practical actions that could help overcome barriers and unlock delivery.
Breakout session learning (summary)
Across the breakout discussions, participants highlighted that scaling green finance for NFM depends on reducing uncertainty and transaction costs, improving consistency in standards and evidence requirements, and designing mechanisms that support long-term delivery and maintenance. Groups also stressed the importance of partnership working and clearer alignment between funders, investors, landowners and delivery organisations.
- Corporate social responsibility: Works best when framed around risk reduction and resilience, and when projects are packaged as clear, deliverable co-funding opportunities. A key barrier is CSR being treated as optional and vulnerable to cuts, alongside variable understanding and alignment across organisations.
- Credit markets: Participants emphasised the need for stronger standards, governance and clarity (including around additionality and permanence), plus support to reduce knowledge gaps and avoid perverse incentives. Long-term commitments can deter landowners, and early adopters can be disadvantaged.
- Payment for ecosystem services: Strong potential where schemes provide longer-term, flexible funding, but uncertainty over future funding and a high “burden of proof” remain major blockers. Better access to baseline data, more strategic business case approaches, and maintenance funding were recurring priorities.
We are grateful to all speakers and attendees for their contributions. A detailed highlight of the breakout session and slides from the day are available below, and the outputs will help inform priorities for future CoP activity.