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More Government funding allocated to flood-hit areas

Published	20 July 2007

Floods Recovery Minister John Healey today announced which of the local authorities worst affected by the floods will receive further payments from the Government's flood recovery support package.

The money will reach authorities as soon as possible next week. This means it will help local authorities make a quick and real difference to the lives of those people in the greatest need.

32 authorities will receive money. For 27 authorities this represents a second payment - last week £8 million was distributed to 34 authorities. As before the funding has been allocated to support councils and communities based on the relative number of households affected.

Today's announcement means the full £10 million immediate flood recovery package announced by the Prime Minister on 7 July has now been released.

For those flood-hit authorities not receiving payments through this package, subject to eligibility, other support may be available for schools and transport as well as enhanced support through the Bellwin scheme. This will be paid once councils and Government have a clearer assessment of the full costs incurred.

Local authorities will decide how best to spend the money allocated today in their communities. Money distributed last week is already helping those people in the greatest need. For example:

• Kingston upon Hull has established a Hull Flood Fund where it is using money from Government and donations from local businesses and residents to relieve the hardship of the worst affected. The individual needs of over 1,000 households are being assessed and the most vulnerable are receiving a tailored support package - including new white goods like fridges, cash grants and help with cleaning up properties. They are assessed individually and the most vulnerable and needy sections of the community will be given priority irrespective of whether they have insurance.
• Doncaster Council is providing people with essential items they need to get back into their homes such as furniture and white goods. The money is also being put towards a temporary accommodation park in Toll Bar to keep the community together while their homes are unsuitable to live in.
• Rotherham MBC has added £250,000 to the central Government support payment. This will enable people in nearly 400 properties to receive a humanitarian grant aid payment of £750, providing valuable aid and support to people at a time when they are most vulnerable. Every household, whether privately or council owned, where flood damage was sustained above floorboard level in the living area is to receive a single, one-off payment of £750, irrespective of whether they have their own insurance arrangements.
• North Lincolnshire Council is giving 'disruption' cash to residents whose homes were damaged and North East Lincolnshire Council is giving families cash payments to help them start fixing their homes. Interim payments are being handed out at civic offices.
• North East Derbyshire District Council is inviting residents to apply for a share of the money to help meet the cost of replacing damaged goods and repairs. The level of support for each household will depend on the amount of damage to property and belongings and the number of households applying for support.

 John Healey MP said:

"My top priority is to help life in flood-hit communities get back to normal as quickly as possible. So I am pleased we have been able to confirm these payments to local authorities so quickly to help people in the greatest need."

"I know that the money I released last week is already being used by local authorities to make a real difference on the ground - for example providing help in replacing essential household items or keeping communities together while their homes are being repaired."

 "Over the last couple of weeks there has been a huge amount of work across Government to support the local recovery operation. We have announced a range of financial support - including funding for schools and transport as well as extra support through the special Bellwin scheme."

"Whilst we can't turn this around overnight, I want reassure residents that the Government is in this for the long-haul."

"We will continue to work closely with local authorities over the coming days and weeks to get a clear assessment of the scale of costs and ensure further targeted help reaches the worst hit communities as soon as possible."

Notes to editors

A full list of the individual allocations from both round one and round two payments from the Government's initial flood recovery support package is set out below.

Authorities to which grant is to be paid	Amount of grant from around 1 (£)	Amount of grant from around 2 (£)	Total grant (£)
Kingston upon Hull City Council	2,150,000	250,000	2,400,000
Doncaster Metropolitan District Council	1,600,00	-	1,600,000
East Riding of Yorkshire Council	600,000	1,000,000	1,600,000
Wakefield Metropolitan Borough Council	600.000	23,500	623,500
Sheffield City Council	600,000	23,500	623,500
Bassetlaw District Council	200,000	50,000	250,000
East Lindsey District Council	200,000	50,000	250,000
Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council	200,000	50,000	250,000
North East Lincolnshire Council	200,000	-	200,000
Chesterfield Borough Council	200,000	50,000	250,000
Newark Sherwood District Council	200,000	-	200,000
Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council	100,000	30,000	130,000
Brimingham City Council	100,000	30,000	130,000
North Lincolnshire District Council	100,000	30,000	130,000
Kirklees Metropolitan Borough Council	100,000	30,000	130,000
Lichfield District Council	100,000	-	100,000
Leeds City Council	100,000	30,000	130,000
Wyre Forest District Council	100,000	-	100,000
South Shropshire District Council	50,000	-	50,000
Derbyshire Dales District Council	50,000	10,000	60,000
West Lindsey District Council	50,000	80,000	130,000
Boston Borough Council	50,000	10,000	60,000
Selby District Council	50,000	10,000	60,000
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council	50,000	-	50,000
Bridgnorth District Council	50,000	10,000	60,000
Malvern Hills District Council	50,000	10,000	60,000
Gloucester City Council	20,000	3,000	23,000
Harrogate Borough Council	20,000	3,000	23,000
Warwick District Council	20,000	40,000	60,000
Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council	20,000	3,000	23,000
North East Derbyshire District Council	20,000	3,000	23,000
Gedling Borough Council	20,000	3,000	23,000
Ashfield District Council	20,000	3,000	23,000
Cheltenham Borough Council	20,000	3,000	23,000
Chester-le-Street District Council	-	60,000	60,000
North Tyneside Borough Council	-	23,000	23,000
Darlington Borough Council	-	23,000	23,000
Newcastle-Under- Lyme Borough Council	-	23,000	23,000
Telford and Wrekin Council	-	23,000	23,000
Total	8,010,000	1,990,000	10,000,000

 A summary of action to date to support flood-hit communities is set out below:

• All of the worst affected areas have been visited by ministers or senior officials and further visits are planned
• The Prime Minister pledged £10 million funding to support the recovery work of local authorities. £8 million was paid into the bank accounts of 34 local authorities last Friday - in less than a week of the PM's initial announcement. The Prime Minister also announced £3 million to meet claims from local authorities for help with the cost of repairing roads and bridges and £1million for grant applications to cover replacement of essential household items for vulnerable individuals and their families.
• The Department for Work and Pensions is helping people on income related benefits or the lowest of incomes affected by the flooding with essential costs through Community Care Grants and repayable interest-free Crisis Loans, administered by Jobcentre Plus. A contingency reserve of £1 million can be drawn on by Jobcentre Plus as needed to meet the extra call on Community Care Grants
• The Department for Transport has £3 million available to support longer run infrastructure costs in flood affected areas. This will be called on as the detailed requirements of local authorities are better analysed
• The Prime Minister also announced that we have made the special Bellwin Scheme more generous in the exceptional circumstances of these floods. This will allow local authorities to reclaim 100 per cent of their cost (up from 85 per cent) and to claim costs incurred in the 6 months following the incident (up from 2 months). To date 26 authorities have notified their intention to claim under Bellwin
• For businesses the Government's regional development agencies have each set up a fund to support business recovery in the worst affected areas

• Advantage West Midlands has made available funding of up to £500,000 to secure the repair of the Severn Valley Railway and £250,000 for a marketing and publicity campaign, working with local authorities and partners, to encourage more visitors to speed-up the recovery of the tourism economy
• The East Midlands Development Agency has made available a £500,000 Flood Recovery Fund to help support small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) affected by the floods. Grants for up to £2,500 for immediate recovery needs following the floods which struck the region in mid June 
• Yorkshire Forward initially announced a £1,000,000 Small Business Recovery Scheme to support small and medium size businesses affected by floods, and has since increased this to £2,000,000. Again, grants of up to £2,500 are available for losses as a result of the floods. First payment was made to a company in Rotherham on 9 July, just seven working days after the helpline opened. Large companies in Yorkshire and the Humber (over 250 employees) are being contacted on an individual basis to discuss their specific needs

• The Department for Children, Schools and Families has announced an initial £10 million of support for schools and children's services in flood affected areas. Further assessment work is currently taking place with the affected local authorities
• A significant number of homes have been flooded and people displaced. Communities and Local Government has made available its specialist homelessness advisors to provide practical advice and support and a team are currently visiting affected areas
• Government Ministers have met with representatives from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) as part of discussions on the insurance industry's role in the response to recent flood damage. According to the ABI, 99 per cent of households and businesses have now been visited by loss adjusters. The insurance industry has assured the Government that its priority is to ensure that those who cannot remain in their homes have appropriate temporary accommodation and that as many businesses as possible are able to continue activities during this recovery period. Insurers are also making provision for early payments to help to deal with immediate hardship. The Government and the ABI have agreed to maintain discussions on this issue to ensure that any ongoing or further concerns are resolved quickly.
• The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has announced that the government will be undertaking a formal review which will want to hear from those involved or affected at local, regional and national level inside and outside the public sector. Reports from this review will be published.

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