Saturday 12 December 2015

Flooding Update: Help available for those affected

I have now received confirmation from Greg Clark, the Secretary of state for Communities and Local Government, in relation to the actions the Government is taking to help those who have been affected by the recent floods:

1) Community and Business Recovery Scheme: 
  • Provide the Council with £500 for each household affected by flooding; for example this could be used to help with temporary accommodation costs. 
  • Provide grants of up to £5,000 for householders to protect their home from future flooding; for example this could be used to replace doors and windows with flood resistant alternatives or new flood barriers. 
  • Provide the equivalent of £2,500 per business via the Council to help those businesses that have had their trading disrupted. There is also specific funding to help farmers restore their land. 

2) Council Tax and Business Rate Relief:
The Government has made funding available to enable the Council to offer a 100% Council Tax discount to anyone who is unable occupy their home and 100% Business Rates discount for firm that have been impacted by the flooding.

3) Bellwin Grant for Local Councils:
I also want to highlight that the Government is doing to reimburse the County Council for costs incurred with their actions to safeguard life and prevent further suffering and severe inconvenience as result of the floods. The so-called 'Bellwin Grant" will be available at 100% above the normal threshold and will reimburse local Councils from Government funds.

Collectively these Government support schemes add up to over £60 million. The Department for Transport is now also going to work with the Council to assess what additional help could be provided to help repair roads and bridges.

If you have been affected by the recent flooding I would urge you to contact Northumberland County Council as soon as possible.