Council support for flood hit homes and businesses

Leeds City Council has confirmed an initial range of financial support proposals which will be made available for households and businesses severely affected by the recent floods in the city.

Councillor Judith Blake, leader of Leeds City Council, said:

“Since the terrible flooding last weekend, we have been working tirelessly with agencies and volunteers to help those affected by the initial emergency and to help them to start clearing up the debris left in its wake. Clearly, this is just the first step in a long recovery process and we will now look to agree some additional measures to help to continue this support.

"For householders affected a new hardship fund is being setup which will provide up to £500 per household to help with recovery costs, such as provision of temporary accommodation.

"We will also provide council tax relief for residents whose homes have been severely affected.

"With regard to businesses affected we propose to provide business rate relief and are also exploring a range of grants and loans to help get businesses back on their feet. We will have detailed discussions with affected businesses about what would work best and the additional support that they will need.

"We will publish more detail on these financial support schemes next week including details on how the funding can be accessed. We will aim to make the process as straightforward as possible with payments and relief being paid direct to individuals and businesses affected."

Anyone severely affected by the flooding and wishing to register for support should email the council at floodrelief@leeds.gov.uk or call 0113 222 4444 providing details of their name, address, daytime and evening telephone numbers and a short explanation of how their house or business has been affected and their urgent needs. We will make contact with them by the end of the next working day. This information is also available on the Leeds City Council website.

ENDS

Leeds City Council press office (0113) 395 0244