The government is refreshing its approach to delivering flood funding and is to deliver additional financial support to farmers and rural communities, Minister for Water and Flooding, Emma Hardy will announce today (Wednesday, November 13).
Recognising the significant impact of flooding on farmers, an additional £50 million will be distributed to internal drainage boards (IDBs), the public bodies responsible for managing water levels for agricultural and environmental needs in a particular area.
This transformational investment will put IDBs on a firm footing to deliver their vital role in flood and water management for years to come.
IDBs that submit successful bids will be able to spend the £50 million on projects over the next two years. This will benefit projects that will improve, repair or replace IDB assets – including flood barriers, embankments and maintenance of watercourses.
Flood funding
The funding will support projects which reduce risks and impacts from flooding to farmer and rural communities across England. The Environment Agency has began work with IDBs to distribute the funding from today.
The government has also committed to going further to protect communities from flooding. It inherited an outdated funding formula for allocating money to proposed flood defences.
Established in 2011, the existing formula slows down the delivery of new flood schemes through a complex application process, and also neglects more innovative approaches to flood management such as nature-based approaches and sustainable drainage.
A consultation will be launched in the new year which will include a review of the existing formula to ensure that the challenges facing businesses and rural and coastal communities are adequately taken into account when delivering flood protection.
The government has also today confirmed payments to farmers impacted by last year’s severe weather through the Farming Recovery Fund.
A total of £60 million will be distributed to eligible farmers, via recovery payments of between £2,895 and £25,000 to around 13,000 farm businesses. Payments are expected to land in farmers’ accounts from November 21.
According to Minister Hardy: “Farmers are the backbone of the nation, with their hard work helping to put food on the family tables across the country.
“More intense weather events are destroying homes, businesses and livelihoods across the country, with farming communities facing the heaviest consequences.
“That is why this government is reforming how flood funds are distributed to protect businesses, rural and coastal communities as we invest over £2.4 billion in flood defences across the country.”
The government is investing £2.4 billion until March 2026 to improve flood resilience and better protect communities across the country, including from coastal erosion, with further decisions for 2026/2027 and beyond made at the next Spending Review.
