WIREDGOV

Councils are prepared for the threat of flooding this winter but need government to simplify the way it distributes emergency recovery cash to ensure it reaches local areas as quickly as possible.

The Met Office has forecasted months of prolonged winter rainfall with flood alerts having been issued across parts of southern England earlier this month.

The Local Government Association's Winter Weather Survey reveals councils are ready for any repeat of last winter's storms – which saw the wettest autumn and winter for 250 years and caused around £3 billion worth of damage.

Councils in areas badly affected across the country have worked hard to shore up flood defences to protect homes and businesses, repair gullies and fix damaged infrastructure such as roads and bridges.

While councils are ready for any prolonged rainfall, the LGA is urging government to also learn the lessons of last winter by making sure it has a simpler and more co-ordinated system for distributing emergency funds.

Last winter, the Government announced 14 different flood relief funding pots – worth almost £450 million – over the space of two months. Each had their own specific criteria and application process often making it over-complicated for communities to access.

This year, the LGA is calling for a single emergency fund – administered through an online application process – to be set up which would help councils, businesses and residents access funding more easily and ensure it reaches local areas in need more quickly.

Cllr Peter Box, the LGA's Environment Spokesman, said: 

"Communities which are still recovering from last year's floods can be assured councils are more ready than ever to protect them from further flooding this winter.

"Councils are monitoring weather forecasts and flood alerts with staff ready to support emergency services, deliver thousands of sandbags, clear roads, pump away floodwater and use state-of-the-art technology to reduce flooding risks at the first sign of worsening weather.

"Emergency government funding has been vital in helping communities recover from the devastation caused by floods. However, we must avoid a repeat of last year when new funding pots were announced by the Government on a weekly basis creating confusion about how to apply and what it could be spent on."

The LGA's Annual Winter Weather Survey reveals:

• 68 per cent of councils will be deploying gully-sucking lorries this winter to remove excess water and sludge from drains and gullies. More than half of these will be guided by GPS technology.
• Councils will use sandbags where appropriate to reduce the flood risk to homes and businesses and to keep floodwater off roads.
• Nine in 10 councils will be providing live updates to residents and businesses on winter weather and flood prevention activity with more than three quarters planning to use Twitter to spread messages.

Notes to editors

1. The LGA's Research and Information team conducted an online survey of all 174 highways authorities in England and Wales who carry out winter weather gritting and flood prevention activity (all councils except districts). It took place between 29 September and 4 November with a response rate of 44 per cent (76 councils). All figures quoted in this release are based on respondents only.

2. LGA summary of government flood summary announcements between January 17 and March 19

Case studies

East Riding of Yorkshire
A year after the devastating tidal surge that affected more than 1,100 properties along the Humber, East Riding of Yorkshire Council is leading a project to install innovative new flood defences.  The proposed new £1.2 million defences, in the village of Paull, will involve installing a reinforced steel and aluminium structure interspaced with glass panels designed to withstand water pressure and capable of taking an impact from large debris.

Cornwall Council
Storm repairs have now been completed on 56 schemes in coastal areas by Cornwall Council. The area experienced 12 major storms between December 2013 and March 2014 causing huge damage to coastal infrastructure in 245 locations with damage to properties, beaches, piers, bridges and harbours.

More than £9.5 million worth of work to repair the coastal areas damaged has been carried out by Cornwall Council over the past few months.

Poole Council
To protect residential properties and infrastructure from further coastal erosion, Poole Council will pump around 40,000 cubic metres of sand onto Shore Beach. The work will take place 24/7 over two weeks from mid-November.

Leeds City Council
The first part of a major £50 million flood defence project to help protect Leeds has been completed. The scheme will provide the city centre and over 3,000 homes and 500 businesses, with protection against a one in 75 year flood event from the River Aire and Hol Beck.

Leicester City Council
Work is due to take place on part of a river near the Great Central Way to reduce the risk of flooding. Leicester City Council and the Environment Agency are due to start work to remove a large amount of silt which has built up over the last 100 years between the two southernmost arches of the Biam Bridge, which carries the Great Central Way over the River Biam near Rowley Fields. The work will involve lowering the ground level beneath the arches by about one metre, which will help reduce the risk of flooding to hundreds of homes.

Norfolk County Council
Properties, businesses and local communities along some parts of Norfolk's coastline are set to receive a flood protection funding boost, courtesy of Norfolk County Council's Coastal Fund. The £250,000 Coastal Fund was agreed by county councillors in February to help locations suffering from the effects of coastal flooding, following the tidal surge which affected coastal communities in December 2013. Schemes approved for funding include construction of trial sea defences, erection of flood barriers and flood embankment repairs.

Somerset County Council
Proposals for a new organisation to oversee flood protection measures in Somerset have been approved by Somerset County Council. The planned Somerset Rivers Authority forms part of the council's 20-year Flood Action Plan. It will focus on enhanced maintenance of river channels and flood banks along the county's waterways in order to help reduce the risk of flooding.

Contact

Greg Burns, Senior Media Relations Officer
Local Government Association 
Telephone: 020 7664 3184
Email: greg.burns@local.gov.uk
Media Office (for out-of-hours contact): 020 7664 3333
Local Government House, Smith Square, London SW1P 3HZ

www.local.gov.uk