Areas hit hard by Storm Henk flooding eligible for government payments worth thousands

Areas hit hard by flooding after Storm Henk will be able to apply for thousands of pounds in government money to pay for recovery work and repairs.

The financial support will be available to eligible areas in England that have experienced exceptional localised flooding.

The help includes flooded households being eligible for £500 in cash to assist with immediate costs.

More than 1,800 properties have flooded due to saturated ground, said the Environment Agency (EA) as it urged the public to “remain vigilant”.

The impact of high water levels is set to continue over the next five days, and many rivers will remain elevated, the EA added.

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As of 3.30pm on Saturday, 210 flood warnings and 217 flood alerts were in place in England and significant flooding was forecast in parts of the Midlands, Lincolnshire and on the River Thames.

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Also, a cold weather alert warning was issued on Saturday, covering most of this week.

The financial help will be made available through a scheme called the Flood Recovery Framework, which is used in exceptional circumstances to support councils and communities following severe flooding.

Communities Secretary Michael Gove said: “If you’ve been affected by the recent severe flooding, you do not have to deal with it alone – we are providing financial help so you can recover as quickly as possible.”

Support will also be available for:

• Significantly affected households and businesses who will be eligible for 100% council tax and business rates relief for at least three months.

• Small and medium-sized businesses in eligible affected areas that can apply for up to £2,500 from the Business Recovery Grant to help them get back to business.

• Eligible flood-hit property owners can apply for up to £5,000 to help make their homes and businesses more resilient to future flooding via the Property Flood Resilience Repair Grant Scheme.

• Farmers who have suffered uninsurable damage to their land can apply for grants of up to £25,000 via the Farming Recovery Fund towards repair and reinstatement costs for farmers adversely affected by exceptional flooding.

Katharine Smith, from the EA, said: “Significant river flooding impacts are still expected today and over the next few days across parts of the river Thames in Oxfordshire as well as the River Trent near Nottingham, and the River Severn, including Gloucester.

“The prolonged wet weather and intense rainfall has led to flooding impacts and our thoughts are with all of those affected.”

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