Farmers could be set to benefit from government grants of up to £25,000 through the Farming Recovery Fund Defra has said.
The support has been made available for those affected by Storm Henk through the Flood Recovery Framework, which is used in exceptional circumstances to support councils and communities following severe flooding.
Farmers who have have been adversely affected by flooding and suffered uninsurable damage to their land will be able to apply for the funding to go towards repair and reinstatement costs.
As was the case with Storm Babet, farmers should also be eligible for up to £2,500 from the Business Recovery Grant to help them return quickly to business as usual and up to £5,000 from the Property Flood Resilience Repair Grant Scheme to help make their homes and businesses more resilient to future flooding.
Farmers affected by both storms will be eligible for this funding. As with the Farming Recovery Fund, we await more details on the grants.
Storm Henk has caused widespread flooding across the UK with more than 150 flood warnings currently in place.
Government must deliver solutions
Additional measures announced include:
- Flooded households will also be able to apply for up to £500 cash to help with immediate costs.
- Households and businesses significantly affected will be eligible for 100% council tax and business rates relief for at least 3 months.
NFU Deputy President Tom Bradshaw welcomed the news on the funding and said the NFU would be looking through the details carefully to see what is covered and who is eligible to apply.
“Many areas of the country are continuing to experience devastating floods and our thoughts are with those communities affected. Thousands of acres of productive farmland are still under water and many crops are not going to survive the winter with the huge financial stress and misery that brings."
“We are continuing to monitor the situation and supporting our members via our network of contacts in the Environment Agency and local authorities,” Tom added.
Following Storm Babet, the NFU sent a letter to Westminster, signed by more than 1,750 people, urging all political parties to outline their plans to protect farming businesses from flooding.
Defra Secretary Steve Barclay said: “45,000 properties are already protected thanks to our flood defences, and I would like to pay tribute to the work of Environment Agency teams, first responders, and others.
“For those who have sadly been affected, our Property Flood Resilience Repair Grant Scheme will soon be open to help residents protect their property in the future, while our Farming Recovery Fund will support farmers who have suffered damage as they work to put food on our tables.”
The Farming Recovery Fund is triggered following exceptional weather events and was last made available in 2019/20. The NFU will publish more details on the fund when they become available.
For more information: nfuonline.com