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Storm Babet 19th / 25th October 2023

Following Storm Babet between the 19th and 25th October 2023 South Staffordshire Council have received confirmation that those county/ unitary areas who have recorded over 50 flooded properties as a direct result of Storm Babet are eligible for funding under the Flood Recovery Framework.

The 50 property criteria applies to the whole of Staffordshire, and whilst we know there were a number of parts of the District impacted by the recent bad weather , South Staffordshire Council or colleagues at Staffordshire County Council have not received any conformation of properties being directly impacted within South Staffordshire.

To hit the threshold and be able to draw down funding to support affected properties, 50 verified incidents with supporting evidence must be recorded across the County. If you are aware of any properties in your wards/parishes which were impacted by the flooding can you please ask the resident to get in touch via emergencyplanning@sstaffs.gov.uk  and we can then confirm if the property meets the set criteria, add this to the combined county list of properties, and if the threshold is met we will then be in a position to support those properties.

Properties have until Thursday 25th January 2024 to come forward, after this date no additional impacts will be able to be recorded or claimed against.

Available Support if (50 property threshold is met)

  • Flooded households in affected areas can apply for up to £500 to give cash quickly to help with immediate costs.
  • Households and businesses significantly affected by recent flooding will be eligible for 100% council tax and business rates relief for at least 3 months.
  • Small-to-medium sized businesses in affected areas will be eligible for up to £2,500 from the Business Recovery Grant to help them return quickly to business as usual.
  • Eligible flood-hit property owners will be able to apply for up to £5,000 to help make their homes and businesses more resilient to future flooding via the Property Flood Resilience Repair Grant Scheme.

Eligibility Criteria

Which households are eligible

Eligible households will be primary residences where, as a result of the relevant severe weather event:

  • flood water entered into the habitable areas of the residence; or
  • flood water did not enter into habitable areas, but the local authority regards that the residence was otherwise considered unliveable for a period of time

Second homes and empty homes will not be eligible.

Instances where households might be considered unliveable could include:

  • where access to the property is severely restricted (e.g. upper floor flats with no access)
  • key services such as sewerage, water and power supplies are severely affected
  • the adverse weather has resulted in other significant damage to the property such that it would be, or would have been advisable for residents to vacate the premises for a period of time, regardless of whether they do vacate or not
  • flooded gardens or garages will not usually render a household eligible but there may be exceptions where it could be demonstrated that such instances mean effectively that the property is unliveable.

Business eligibility criteria

Small and medium businesses which:

  • are directly impacted by the severe weather event – for instance there was flood damage to the property, equipment, and/or stock; or
  • are indirectly impacted by the severe weather event – for instance business has had no/highly restricted access to premises, equipment and/or stock as a result of flooding, restricted access for customers, suppliers and/or staff and directly suffered loss of trade as a result.