More than 400,000 hectares of agricultural land in England will benefit from improved flood protection following a £16 million boost to the Internal Drainage Board (IDB) Fund, bringing the total to £91 million. The announcement was made today, 31 March, by Water and Flooding Minister Emma Hardy, as part of the Government’s ongoing Plan for Change.
The new funding will support IDBs — local public bodies responsible for managing water levels across 1.2 million hectares, around 9.7% of England’s land area. They operate 500 pumping stations and maintain over 22,000 kilometres of watercourses. The additional funds will help cover operational costs following the severe winter storms of 2023/4, fund repairs to flood infrastructure such as pumping stations, and support upgrades to ensure long-term resilience.
“This additional funding will ensure rural flood assets are more resilient or fully replaced, putting IDBs on a firm footing to deliver their vital work on flood and water management for years to come,” said Emma Hardy. “Thousands of properties and tens of thousands of hectares of farmland are already seeing their flood resilience improved.”
The Environment Agency, which manages the fund, will distribute grants to IDBs by the end of April 2025. Ian Hodge, Environment Agency Chief Engineer, stated, “By increasing the IDB Fund with an additional £16 million, we are equipping these essential public bodies to address the mounting challenges posed by climate change, including more frequent and severe weather events.”
The Fund has already supported over 200 projects across 91 of the nation’s 112 IDBs. Completed projects include a £1.3 million upgrade to pumping stations near Gloucester, supporting flood defences and agricultural resilience. Other works include desilting ditches, repairing embankments, and installing telemetry and water control structure for remote operations.
Bill Symons of the York Consortium of Drainage Boards said, “The IDB Fund has allowed us to deliver more sustainable, higher quality works on flood infrastructure badly damaged by storms and flooding. The funding has reduced financial pressure locally at a critical time.”
With much of England’s highest-quality farmland falling under IDB-managed areas, the investment is seen as vital to agricultural productivity. In February, the Government announced a £2.65 billion flood infrastructure investment over two years, reinforcing its commitment to protecting communities and the countryside.
