ALLERDALE Council is to get £142,500 as part of the second round of a £5.5 million grant scheme to help households better protect their homes against flooding.

The award was announced by Environment Minister, Huw Irranca-Davies when he visited Cumbria on Thursday.

A total of £451,500 being awarded in the North West, the Cumbrian money will go to  Eden District Council (£68,400), Allerdale Borough Council ((£142,500), Carlisle County Council (£34,200), South Lakeland District Council (£76,500 & £11,400).

The Property Level Flood Protection Grant Scheme is part of the Government’s response to Sir Michael Pitt’s review of the 2007 floods.

In this the second phase, £2.6 million will be allocated to 34 schemes in areas at high risk of flooding, enabling 532 households to benefit from practical flood protection solutions such as air bricks covers, storm porches, door guards and flood boards.

Mr Irracana-Davies came to see areas which suffered during the severe flooding last November. After visiting Appleby he was at Little Braithwaite before moving on to Cockermouth.

Mr Irranca-Davies said: “In the future we must be prepared for more extreme weather on all levels. There are 490,000 properties at significant risk of flooding in England. Since the floods of 2007 we have been taking action on a range of fronts to protect against the heart breaking damage and destruction that can be caused by floods.”

In the first round of funding, £3 million was made available to 25 local authorities to protect up to 593 properties across England.

Robert Runcie, Environment Agency Director of Flood and Coastal Risk Management, said: "We welcome the second round of funding for Defra's property level flood protection grant scheme. We urge all individuals and businesses at risk of flooding to make their property more resistant by fitting products such as flood gates, in addition to signing up to our free flood warning service”

Local authorities are resposible for delivering the scheme locally and are able to tailor schemes to suit the needs of their communities. 

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