Homeowners will be given a helping hand to make their home more flood resilient in the future thanks to a new government grant scheme opening today.
People whose homes and businesses were flooded between 1 December and 31 March can now apply for a government grant of up to £5,000 through their local authority, regardless of where they live.
The purpose of the grant is to help people with the cost of buying and installing new measures to reduce the chances of flooding in the first place, or limit the damage should they be flooded in the future.
This could include things like a new driveway barrier or replacing doors and windows with water resistant alternatives, or moving electricity sockets to a safer level.
Even if property owners have already fitted new measures following this winter’s flooding they can still apply for the grant retrospectively to cover the cost.
Environment minister, Dan Rogerson, said: "My sympathy is with everyone who was affected by the floods this winter.
"We are working hard to help people rebuild their lives, get back on their feet after the flooding and build a more resilient country for the future.
"I would urge anyone who was flooded to apply for a grant to become more flood resilient. This support, coupled with the government’s record investment in flood defences, will ensure we are better protected from the risk of flooding in the future."
The government is spending £2.4 billion on tackling flooding and coastal erosion in this four year period – this is more than ever before.
The grant is also open to collaborative applications to improve community wide resilience. In the Thames Valley, the Environment Agency and the Local Authority are working with residents to “pool” their funding for more extensive resilience measures protecting the wider community.
The government has also announced a number of other funds to give people the help and support they need to get their lives back to normal and become more resilient to flooding in the future, including:
- all affected businesses will get 100% business rate relief for three months and will also get an extra three months to pay the business taxes they owe to HMRC as they get back on their feet
- a £10million fund for farmers suffering water-logged fields to help restore it to farmable land as quickly as possible. This is now open for applications from farmers
- in addition, £10 million is available under the Farming and Forestry Improvement Scheme, part of the Rural Development Programme. This provides support for farm business resilience
- grants of up to £5,000 are available for fishermen to replace storm damaged gear such as lobster creels and crab pots
Read more government information and advice about flooding and recovery in parts of the UK.
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