Vicar welcomes £2.6m fund to help flood-hit Tenbury Wells

A vicar who was among people rescued by boat during flooding in Worcestershire has welcomed news £2.6m will be spent to boost a town's flood defences.

The Reverend Mark Inglis, of St Mary's in Tenbury Wells, said some people there had been unable to return home for many months after flooding in 2020.

A flood defence scheme is proposed to be built alongside the church, which was badly hit by the flooding.

The government's Frequently Flooded Allowance has so far allocated £26m.

The first 53 areas to benefit were announced earlier this month as part of the allowance which will give £100m to areas where 10 or more properties have been flooded at least twice in the past 10 years.

About 130 properties in Tenbury Wells were flooded when Storm Dennis struck the market town in February 2020.

"It was devastating for those who either managed a business there or who lived there. And of course it took months and months and months to return the properties to normal and some people never returned," said Mr Inglis.

"It was catastrophic for those that were directly involved."

A total of £2.5m has been allocated for the community flood alleviation scheme near the churchyard and £100,000 for a project which provides grants for houses and businesses.

Mr Inglis said the funding should make the proposed scheme "more deliverable".

Nearly £4m will be spent improving defences in Worcestershire and Herefordshire, including £750,000 for Severn Stoke and £200,000 each for the Eardisland flood alleviation project and the Leintwardine and Walford property flood alleviation scheme.

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