Commercial property owners and business owners that have been flooded may be eligible to apply for a Flood Mitigation Grant (also known as a Flood Resilience Grant or Repair and Renew Grant). The purpose of this grant is to provide funding for measures designed to improve the property’s resistance or resilience to flooding, over and above any repairs that would normally be covered by insurance. Businesses may wish to apply for this grant in order to better prepare their property in the event that it may be flooded again in the future.
Bradley-Mason LLP offers professional advice in applying for a Flood Mitigation Grant in addition to conducting the necessary initial Building Survey required for a successful application. The more critical Flood Resilience Survey can also be carried out by our experts where required.
Flood Resilience Survey
A report designed to assess the commercial property and identify any resistance and resilience options that are available in order to better protect the property against flood risks in the future. By conducting this report, clients will receive detailed information on what can be done to prevent flood damage from occurring in the future, the applications of which can be set in motion using Flood Mitigation Grant funds.
When Will I Receive the Grant?
The grant is received following the completion of the building survey and flood resilience works. Therefore, clients will have to pay up front, the costs of any surveys and flood resilience measures they may choose to implement before getting the grant from the council.
However, written confirmation via a grant award letter will be given before any flood resilience works have been implemented, in order to properly inform the client that they will be receiving the grant. This gives clients peace of mind that they will receive a refund for any works implemented that would have been covered by the grant.
Advice When Applying for a Grant
Below is a summary of the main steps that must be taken before and after applying for a Flood Mitigation Grant:
- Download the report provided by the National Flood Forum, which outlines typical flood resilience measures that can be carried out to the building.
- You will need to instruct a Building Surveyor to carry out a Building Survey of the property to identify all suitable flood resilience measures. This report will then be used to form part of your online application. Bradley-Mason LLP can carry out this survey and would be happy to provide this additional service. The grant allows for a fee of £500 for this survey to be carried out.
- Following the building survey report, quotes need to be gathered relating to the flood resilient measures identified in the building survey report. These quotes will then be attached to the online application form as evidence of the works you are going to carry out. It is recommended that more than one quote for each type of works are submitted.
- Apply for the grant – also known as a Repair and Renew Grant – via your local County Council website. Quotes and additional information can also be included in the application form to help assist the application process
- Once the application is sent to your Local County Council, they have reviewed the application and are happy with it, you will receive a grant award letter. This will set out the works that should be undertaken and the level of the grant that will be awarded upon successful completion of these works. You will then sign an acceptance form outlining the conditions of the grant. Once we have received this letter we will look at implementing any flood resilient works into our scope of works and subsequently into the project works.
- Once all the works are complete final receipts / invoices need to be submitted to the council so that the grant funds can be released. The council expects that works are completed within three months unless we state otherwise.
- Payment will then be paid directly into your chosen bank account within 30 days.
Get In Touch
If you would like more information regarding the application process for Flood Mitigation Grants, or if you would like to find out about the other property related services offered by the Bradley-Mason LLP team, contact us today. Please be aware that depending on your council the deadline is likely to be early June. Call us on 01423 534 604 or complete the contact form and we will get back to you.
Click here to download a guidance document on Flood Support Schemes. For information on PLP, click here.
DISCLAIMER: This article is for general information only and not intended as advice. Each project has its own set of unique circumstances, all potential issues should be investigated by a surveyor on a case by case basis before making any decision.