The Committee considered a report by the Public Protection Manager (circulated previously) regarding funding for victims of Barnstaple floods which occurred on 17 August 2020.

The Public Protection Manager highlighted the following:

·         The flash flooding which occurred in Barnstaple on 17 August 2020 affected 117 residential and commercial properties.

·         A number of agencies including North Devon Council responded to the incident and a Recovery Co-ordinating group was set up.

·         The Committee was asked to consider whether to utilise part of the Covid 19 Hardship fund to support householders who were flooded in Barnstaple on 17 August 2020.  The suggested funding structure was detailed in paragraph 4.2 of the report.  The views of the Recovery Co-ordinating Group had been sought.

·         The Council had promoted the use of the Devon County Council Flood Online Reporting Tool (FORT) as part of the recovery stage.  One property in Bishops Tawton was shown to be flooded on the FORT map

·         The Council had been advised that properties in Landkey and North Molton had been flooded, but these had not been reported through the online reporting tool.  Any future flooding needed to be reported using the online tool and guidance would be provided on how to report incidents.

·         If the Committee approved the funding, then applicants would be requested to provide evidence of the flooding that had occurred.

Councillor Roome addressed the Committee.

In response to questions, the Chief Executive advised the following:

·         The NDC Covid 19 Hardship fund was for private individuals and not businesses and had been awarded to the Council by Devon County Council.  Devon County Council (DCC) had confirmed that the Council’s own policy could determine eligibility in order to respond to local circumstances and there was discretion to use some for hardship caused by flooding and that DCC would support use of the funds for this purpose.

·         Since the flooding had occurred, the impact of Covid 19 on North Devon’s economy had been firmed up and 7 out of 10 worst affected wards in Devon were within North Devon.  Nationally the full impact of Covid 19 was unknown.  One third of UK employers were planning on making redundancies and the major impacts on individuals and families was still to be felt.

·         If the Covid 19 Hardship fund was used to support householders who were flooded, this fund would not be replaced by DCC and potentially one third of the total fund would be used for this purpose.

·         The flash flood was not a one off event and was likely to occur again and there was concern that this would set a precedent and pressure on North Devon Council to provide funding.

·         The Covid 19 Hardship Fund was there to provide funding to those experiencing hardship and could be used to purchase such items as school uniforms, face masks, travel to medical appointments.

·         The additional flooding that had occurred over the weekend of the 3^rd and 4^th October had not been reported to the Council.

·         The Committee had discretion to make a decision regarding the use of the Covid 19 hardship fund.  The Council was prioritising helping people experiencing hardship.  He referred to a recent email that had been sent to all Councillors thanking the Council for helping an individual who was experiencing financial hardship to buy school uniform.

In response to a question, Councillor Prowse advised that the Environment Agency’s flood protection schemes were dependent upon developer contributions.  The Economic Development team was currently working with landowners regarding cells 3 and 4.  However, this would not have an impact on this type of flooding as it was fluvial.

Councillors Luggar and York addressed the Committee.

In response to questions, the Head of Resources advised the following:

·         The Council had not previously awarded grants to householders who had been flooded.

·         The impact of Covid 19 on individuals was likely to worsen due to furlough scheme ending in October.  The Covid 19 fund was for individuals experiencing hardship.

·         The Contingency Reserve fund could be used to provide grants to householders, although this would affect future availability of this fund if it was used for this purpose.  There was currently approximately £75,000 within the fund.

·         Contributions from Councillors as part of the Community Councillor fund could be considered.

·         The Council had awarded individuals in receipt of Council Tax support a further £150 reduction as part of a Government scheme.

·         It would be difficult for the Council to administer interest free loans, as the Council was not a bank and was suffering financially.

·         An update would be reported to Members regarding the current position on the Mill Road flood defence scheme.

·         Devon County Council was in the process of undertaking a review to identify specific problems, which would be reported to Members in the future.

Marc Rostock, North Devon Homes addressed the Committee.

Councillor Yabsley declared a personal interest as a Member of Devon County Council.  He advised that Devon County Council was responsible for drainage and a report would be presented to Barnstaple County Councillors shortly.  Many drains were combined with sewerage.  In urban areas, drains were cleaned on a three yearly cycle and on a one yearly cycle in rural areas.