Grants for flood hit East Ayrshire residents
East Ayrshire Council is to write to residents and businesses in local communities affected by the recent flooding on 30 December 2015, encouraging them to apply for grant aid in the aftermath of Storm Frank.
Scottish Government funding of £5.8 million has been made available to Local Authorities to help administer the grant scheme.
East Ayrshire’s share is £500k and grants of up to £1,500 are available to help support households, community groups, businesses and charities affected by flooding.
Businesses whose ability to trade has been severely affected by flooding will also be able to apply for an additional grant of £3,000.
The grant is payable to businesses regardless of any existing business rates relief and is a one-off payment to offset costs which cannot be covered by existing insurance – such as clean-up costs, materials and exceptional costs to help the business restore trade, such as marketing and promotion.
Council Leader, Councillor Douglas Reid welcomed the funding announcement and said: “After the flooding in East Ayrshire, I wrote to the first Minister, detailing the human and financial impact of the storm on our local communities.
“This announcement is a positive development for our communities and I’d encourage all those who qualify for assistance to make an application.”
The Scottish Government has also indicated it may follow up on all successful grant applications to see what difference the money has made.
Households, businesses, community groups (such as sports clubs etc), or charitable organisations in the local area, directly affected by the flooding, will all be eligible to apply for the funding which can be used to:
- Reimburse the cost of not receiving Council services paid for through Council Tax/Business Rates while absent from their homes, or while trading was disrupted - Enable residents and businesses to install prevention measures against possible future floods.
An application form for the grant will be included in the Council’s correspondence, with details on eligibility criteria, an application guide and a dedicated contact point to help with further enquiries and assistance.
To claim, fill in the application form and return it to the Council at the address provided.