South Yorkshire floods anniversary: leaders demand funding to prevent more devastation

Hundreds of people had to be evacuated from their homes in Doncaster, while stranded shoppers were forced to spend the night at Meadowhall, as a month’s worth of rain fell in a single night on November 7 last year.

One year on, South Yorkshire mayor Dan Jarvis has teamed up with council leaders in Sheffield, Doncaster, Barnsley and Rotherham to demand the investment needed to prevent a repeat of the flooding which affected more than 1,000 homes and 565 businesses across the region.

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The Sheffield City Region Mayoral Combined Authority said it had agreed to bring forward £5.5 million of investment to help kickstart work on nine ‘critical’ flood protection schemes.

It claims that money will help protect 860 homes across South Yorkshire and ensure Sheffield and Rotherham railway stations can remain open, along with major road, rail and Supertram links, in the event of another deluge.

But Mr Jarvis and the region’s council leaders have written to the environment secretary, George Eustice, calling on him to match that funding in order to get the works moving, and to provide the remaining £36m needed at the Spending Review to ensure all nine projects can be completed swiftly.

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They are also urging the Government to prioritise other work, after the Environment Agency included 26 out of 27 schemes set out in the South Yorkshire Flood Response Plan in the agency’s indicative future programme of works.

Mr Jarvis said: “There are still dozens of families who have not been able to return to their homes and are living in temporary accommodation following the 2019 floods.

"The dangers of flooding have not subsided, only last week, once again we saw the effects flooding has on whole communities with towns and villages flooded across Yorkshire.

"I’ve fought tirelessly for the Government to work with us to develop a plan which will keep the whole of South Yorkshire safe from a repeat of the devastation last winter.

"That’s why I’m pleased that, working with the four local authority leaders, we are aiming to bring forward nine shovel ready flood protection schemes as part of our wider Flooding Response Plan.

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"We stand ready to deliver these nine flood protection schemes and will invest £5.5 million to protect our residents and businesses. We are putting our money where our mouth is – but now we need the Government to do the same at the Spending Review.”

A Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs spokesman said: “Since 2015, we’ve invested more in flood defences for Yorkshire than any other region. £496 million has been spent to better protect more than 66,000 properties, while £12.8 million has been specifically invested in South Yorkshire for recovery and repairs to defences following last winter’s flooding.

“Looking ahead, we are investing a record £5.2 billion over six years in 2,000 new flood defences, and the Environment Agency is working with local representatives in South Yorkshire to ensure the area receives its share.”