GUIDANCE NOTES TO APPLICANTS
Purpose of the Fund
Following an announcement by the Prime Minister on the 12th February 2014, the Repair and
Renew Grant (RRG) scheme has been established to provide grants of up to £5,000 to
homeowners and businesses that had been flooded between the 1st December 2013 and 31st
March 2014 inclusive, to implement flood resistance and/ or resilience measures to minimise the
impact of any future floods.
The RRG will not provide funding support for general repairs from flood damage (e.g. carpets),
or to insurance excess payments.
Who Can Apply?
The following premises are eligible for RRG;

Residential properties (including static caravans where it is the primary residence, i.e.
registered as such on the electoral role) where habitable internal areas of the premise (i.e.
not garages and outbuildings) have been damaged by flooding between the 1st December
2013 and the 31st March 2014.

Business premises (including social enterprise) and charitable organisation properties where
internal areas of the premise which are critical to the day to day operations (i.e. not storage
sheds or warehouses) have been damaged by flooding between the 1st December 2013 and
the 31st March 2014.
The applicant must be the person responsible for the fabric of the property, normally the property
owner.
Criteria

The interior of your home or business premises must have been damaged by flooding
between 1st December 2013 and 31st March 2014 inclusive. Please see definition above.

The applicant must not have received other sources of public or insurance funding to
establish the same resilience/resistance measures being applied for in this grant application.
You must ensure that you have discussed your proposed RRG application with your
insurance provider.

If your property was flooded due to its proximity to the River Thames you may also be entitled
to additional property-level-flood protection grant funding from the Environment Agency.
Therefore before you think about what resistance measures you feel your property needs,
please also contact the Environment Agency’s surveyor at JBA Consulting on
plp@jprop.co.uk or telephone 01633 410021.

In Surrey all flooded properties are entitled to make an application to the RRG scheme. In
other areas of the country some properties might be excluded from the RRG scheme if they
are going to benefit from a community level flood defence scheme being built within the next
year. This does not apply to any properties In Surrey.


Applicants should utilise advice on the Property Protection Adviser website
(http://nationalfloodforum.org.uk/property-level-protection-community-tool/), and other
sources of information referenced in this guidance, to help select the most appropriate
resilience and/ or resistance measures for the nature of the flood risk to their property.
Business applicants will need to comply with state aid regulations. State aid law is how the
European Union regulates state funded support to businesses. To be eligible for RRG
support businesses must not have received more than 200,000 euros of public funding in the
last 3 years. For farming businesses the limit is reduced to 15,000 euros.
What You Can Apply For
Up to £5,000 grant funding towards 100% of the costs (including VAT) of purchasing and
installing appropriate resilience and/ or resistance measures from the eligible list below.
Should you choose to implement measures that cost in excess of £5,000, the additional costs
must be met from alternative resources. If your property was flooded due to its proximity to the
River Thames you may also be entitled to an additional property-level-flood protection grant
funding from the Environment Agency. Before you submit this application to us, please contact
the Environment Agency’s surveyor at JBA Consulting on plp@jprop.co.uk or telephone 01633
410021.
The following resilience and/ or resistance items describe the most common measures that can
be applied for. When selecting which measures you intend to install, we strongly advise that you
consider information available on reference websites such as
www.nationalfloodforum.org.uk/property-level-protection-community-tool/. The guidance will help
you select the appropriate resilience/ resistance measures for the type of flooding in your area –
not all of the identified measures may be appropriate for the type of flood risk to your property,
and may make limited difference to protecting or minimising the damage to your premises.
Prior to making an application, we strongly advise that you obtain professional advice and
have a survey carried out. Should you choose to seek professional advice, you can
retrospectively claim up to £500 of the cost as part of your application (within the total £5,000
including VAT that you can apply for).
The costs contained within the table below are indicative only. Actual costs will take into account
site specific circumstances including the size and construction of the property for which the grant
is being applied for. VAT will also need to be factored into the costs.
Property level-measures
Professional Survey of Premises to
Identify Flood Risks (can be undertaken
prior to RRG application to identify most
appropriate measures and up to £500
of costs applied for retrospectively)
Flood Risk Report
Description of measure and type of flood risk
they are effective against
Professional survey undertaken to identify
property flood risk, and identify appropriate
resilience and/ or resistance measures.
Indicative
cost range
£s
Up to £500
including
VAT
Recommended for all applications
Professional Flood Risk Report can be
commissioned after resilience and/ or resistance
measures fitted to inform any future works, and/
or to submit to insurance companies to
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£ varies
Property level-measures
Description of measure and type of flood risk
they are effective against
Indicative
cost range
£s
demonstrate action taken/ level of future risk.
May be required by mortgage companies.
Watertight cover for airbricks.
Airbrick Cover
Where there are existing air bricks – usually
properties with suspended floors.
Replacement airbrick that automatically closes to
prevent flooding.
Self-closing airbrick
Sceptic tank resistance
£550-650
Non-return valves inserted into the external
foul drain prevent sewage backing up into the
property. Careful consideration should be
given to this with respect to flooding from the
Thames. It is possible that the surcharged
sewers will actually prevent the non-return
valve opening when the toilets are flushed or
sinks and basins are emptied. The capacity of
the internal drains is finite and the
surcharging of the sewer is likely to extend
over days or weeks. The protection of the
non-return valve is negated and internal
sewage flooding may occur in any event.
Valve prevents backflow via waste pipe.
Non-return valves 40mm utility waste
pipe
£70-110
Appropriate to stop flood water entering a
property through cistern overflow pipes.
Prevents backflow via soil waste pipe
Non-return valves 110mm soil waste
pipe
£60-80
Appropriate where surcharged sewers cause
sewage to back flow into downstairs toilets.
Valve prevents backflow via overflow pipe.
Non-return valves 12mm overflow pipe
£30-50
Appropriate where surcharged sewers cause
sewage to back flow into downstairs toilets.
Seal to prevent sewage backflow.
Toilet Pan Seal
£50-90
Where there are existing air brick – usually
properties with suspended floors. Although
more expensive than airbrick covers their
advantage is that they are self-deploying if the
occupier is absent.
Inflatable device to insert in U bend of toilet to
prevent sewage backflow.
Sewerage Bung
£20-40
£80-120
Prevents flood water backing up through
washing machines etc.
Enhancement to properties served by sceptic
tanks to make these tanks more resistant; such
measures can include Isolation valves or changes
3
£ varies
Property level-measures
Description of measure and type of flood risk
they are effective against
Indicative
cost range
£s
to venting above flood level.
Appropriate for all properties that are served
by sceptic tanks
Silicone gel around openings for cables
etc.
Prevents flooding via openings for cables to
access properties.
Appropriate for all properties where it is
proposed to implement resistances measures.
Water resistant mortar used to repair walls and
improve future resistance.
Water resistant repair mortar
Replace sand-cement screeds on solid
concrete slabs (with dense screed)
Replace gypsum plaster with water
resistant material, such as lime
£200-400
Appropriate for all properties where it is
proposed to implement resistances measures.
May need to be considered if existing brick is
porous.
Dense water resistant screed to replace sandcement screed
£670-740
Appropriate for solid ground floors.
Replacement of wall insulation with water
resistant insulation.
Replace mineral insulation within walls
with closed cell insulation
£150-250
Appropriate for all properties where it is
proposed to implement resistances measures.
The porosity of the brickwork needs to be
considered. With porous brickwork
waterproofing of external walls may need to
be considered.
Membrane fitted or other alteration to make
external walls water resistant
Waterproof external walls
£80-120
Appropriate for all properties where it is
proposed to implement resistances measures.
Will need to be considered if walls are in need
of repair.
Improve water resistance through using water
resistant mortar to re-point walls.
Re-pointing external walls with water
resistant mortar
£80-120
£720-800
Appropriate where mineral insulation may
become subject to water damage.
Information and advice (free of charge) can be
obtained from Action Surrey – see the section
on “sources of further guidance” below for
contact details.
Replace existing plaster to water resistant
material in property.
Appropriate for conventionally plastered walls
where resilience measures are being
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£4,280-4,740
Property level-measures
Description of measure and type of flood risk
they are effective against
Indicative
cost range
£s
implemented. Consideration should be given
to this measure if it has been necessary to
strip the existing plaster.
A pump used to remove water that has
accumulated in a water collecting sump basin
Sump Pump
Latest experience indicates that pumps are an
important element in reducing damage if
resistance measures are not 100% effective.
For suspended floors they should be used to
keep the flood water below the underside of
the floor. For solid floors sumps need to be
provided. For homes by the River Thames the duration of flooding on the Thames is
likely to be measured in many days. It is
highly probable that the power supply can fail.
Backup battery systems are available but for
extended loss of power are also likely to fail.
Emergency generation is an alternative
consideration but needs to be carefully
implemented to avoid the danger of carbon
monoxide poisoning.
Guard fitted to doors to resist flooding
Demountable Door Guards
£ varies
Appropriate for provision of flood resistance.
Careful consideration needs to be given to
large patio doors. The advantages of these
are that they are permanent at your home or
business.
Guard fitted to window to resist flooding
Demountable Window Guards
£1,000-2000
Appropriate for provision of flood resistance.
Careful consideration needs to be given to
large patio doors. The advantages of these
are that they automatically deploy if the
occupier is absent. However see comments
on sump pumps.
Permanent additional doors with locks and seals
to resist flooding
Permanent Flood Door
£500-900
Appropriate for provision of flood resistance.
Careful consideration needs to be given to
large patio doors.
Door guards that automatically close to prevent
flooding
Automatic Door Guards
£400-600
For homes by the River Thames: Given the
comparatively shallow depth of flooding
within the local Thames floodplain, unless the
window is low this is probably not an
5
£500-900
Property level-measures
Description of measure and type of flood risk
they are effective against
Indicative
cost range
£s
appropriate solution for local conditions. It
should be noted that it is not recommended to
provide resistance measures for floods that
would rise more than 900mm above the
threshold of the property. The pressure
resulting from depths greater than this could
cause failure of the property walls.
Raising oven off floor above flood level
Replace ovens with raised, built-under
type
Replace chipboard kitchen/bathroom
units with plastic units
Applicable as a resilience measure. Note the
comments on pumps and the possibility of
some internal flooding of resistance
measures, especially where the floors are
solid.
Fit plastic kitchen and/ or bathroom units to
minimise water damage.
£760-840
Appropriate as a resilience measure. Note the
comments on pumps and the possibility of
some internal flooding of resistance
measures, especially where the floors are
solid.
Raise boiler above flood level.
Mount boilers on wall
£5,000-5520
Applicable as a resilience measure. Stainless
steel units are also a consideration.
Re-wiring of electrics (such as socket points)
above flood level.
Move electrics well above likely flood
level
£700-780
£1,080-1200
Applicable as a resilience measure. Note the
comments on pumps and the possibility of
some internal flooding of resistance
measures, especially where the floors are
solid.
Information and advice (free of charge) can be
obtained from Action Surrey – see the section
on “sources of further guidance” below for
contact details.
Raise service meters above flood level.
Move service meters above likely flood
level.
Replace chipboard flooring with treated
timber floorboards
£1,620-1800
Applicable as a resilience measure. Note the
comments on pumps and the possibility of
some internal flooding of resistance
measures, especially where the floors are
solid.
Replace floor (including joists) to make water
resistant.
Appropriate as a resilience measure. Also
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£920-1,020
Property level-measures
Description of measure and type of flood risk
they are effective against
Indicative
cost range
£s
note the comments on pumps. Due to the
likely period of time the timber could be
immersed in flood water advice should be
sought on the best products for this.
Replace floor including joists with treated timber
to make it water resilient
Replace floor including joists with
treated timber to make it water resilient
Appropriate as a resilience measure. Also
note the comments on pumps. Due to the
likely period of time the timber could be
immersed in flood water advice should be
sought on the best products for this.
Install damp proof course to resist groundwater
flooding.
Install chemical damp-proof course
below joist level
£8,210-9,070
Appropriate for properties with existing timber
suspended floors. This can be considered to
be both a resistance and a resilience measure.
This is obviously an expensive option. Unless
flooding is frequent, when the high cost could
be justified against the cost of damage, other
protection measures might be more
appropriate.
Driveway gate or garage barrier to resist flooding.
Garage/Driveway Barrier
£6,250-6,910
In older properties there may be no damp
proof course. Installing a chemical damp
proof course is a way to address this problem
where there is a suspended floor.
Replace wooden flooring with concrete.
Replace timber floor with solid concrete
£3,490-3,850
£2,000-3,000
The use of a driveway gate could be
considered where there are problems with
bow waves from traffic. In combination with a
resistant boundary wall it could be used to
create a barrier around the property.
Consideration needs to be given to the fact
the underlying geology is sands and gravels
which are porous. Thus wall foundations may
need to be deep to reduce seepage or pumps
need to be installed. It is strongly
recommended that advice is sought before
adopting such a solution.
Garage barriers act as resistance measures.
The can be self-activating (at a cost). As with
other resistance measures it should be noted
that pumps may need to be utilised as well.
Other measures may also be effective and value for money, you may wish to discuss options with your
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Property level-measures
Description of measure and type of flood risk
they are effective against
Indicative
cost range
£s
insurance company and/or a professional surveyor.
Where appropriate, we recommend that homeowners and businesses use products that carry the BSI kite
mark for flood protection products (PAS1188) or similar standards.
How to apply and supporting documentation
The Application Form for the RRG is available here. The form should be completed and
submitted to Surrey County Council by email to rrg@surreycc.gov.uk or posted to Surrey County
Council Contact Centre, Room 296-298, County Hall, Penrhyn Road, Kingston upon Thames,
KT1 2DN. If you have any queries about your application please call 0300 200 1003.
All applications must be submitted by 30th September 2014 to ensure sufficient time for the
works to be carried out; applications submitted after this date may be considered depending on
circumstances. Grant claims must be submitted by 18th January 2015 to allow sufficient time to
process the payment of the grant. This is the approval stage of the process and money will not
be available until works are completed.
Applications should be submitted with the following supporting information:Three itemised like for like quotes for each of the resilience and/ or resistance measures
(including installation costs and VAT) applied for. If you have not selected the cheapest available
quote, you should explain why in the application form (question 7).
The quotes must:
 Be independent of the applicant
 Be comparable (e.g. of same or similar specification (quality), size, quantity, units)
 Be dated (within the last six months)
 Show the supplier’s address, telephone number and contact details
 Give the VAT number (if the supplier is VAT registered and VAT is charged on the quote)
 Show the supplier’s company registration number (if they are a limited company)
How will applications be assessed and approved?
Surrey County Council will assess each application to ensure that the applicant is eligible
(property flooded between 1st December 2013 and 31st March 2014 inclusive), meets the criteria
of the fund outlined above, and represents value for money (costs in line with expectations).
Surrey County Council will aim to assess each application within 10 working days of receipt of a
completed application (including all required supporting information), subject to the volume
received.
When your application has been approved, you will receive an approval letter together with a
contractual grant agreement for the grant. The agreement will then need to be signed by you
and sent back to Surrey County Council, either by post, or by e-mail with a scanned signature.
You will then receive a letter acknowledging receipt of the agreement and stating that you may
proceed with the works.
8
When can I start to purchase and install the equipment?
Once you have received a letter from Surrey Country Council acknowledging receipt of your
grant agreement, your contractor may commence the approved works in line with your approved
application and grant agreement.
Wherever possible, you should not incur any costs for purchase and installation of resilience and/
or resistance measures before your application has been approved and you have been formally
notified (letter or e-mail). Should you incur costs before your application is considered, you do so
at your own risk that your application may not be approved, and therefore the expenditure will not
be recoverable.
Surrey County Council and/or Defra do not have any liability for costs incurred before or after the
submission and approval of an RRG application.
Should your application not be approved, you will not be able to recover costs incurred. Surrey
County Council and/ or Defra do not maintain any liability for any expenditure prior to the
submission and approval of an RRG application.
Can I make a retrospective application?
We realise that some people that have been flooded since the 1st December 2013 and the 31st
March have;

Already installed eligible resilience and/ or resistance measures before the RRG was
announced or launched.

Have had to install flood resilience and/ or resistance measures as part of repair works to
premises that had to proceed before the RRG was launched or an application decision could
be reached.
In these circumstances a retrospective application can be made where you can demonstrate that
the value for money was achieved. Any payment of grant against retrospective costs is
dependent on a successful application being submitted and approved.
Should your application not be approved, you will not be able to recover costs incurred. Surrey
County Council and/ or Defra do not maintain any liability for any expenditure prior to the
submission and approval of an RRG application.
If approved, how / when do I claim the grant?
If your application is approved, you can purchase and install the flood resilience or resistance
measures applied for in line with the quote you selected and submitted with your application.
Once the works have been completed and you have received and paid the invoice from your
contractor, you must then notify Surrey County Council by email on rrg@surreycc.gov.uk, or
alternatively by letter to RRG, Surrey County Council Contact Centre, Room 296-298, County
Hall, Penrhyn Road, Kingston upon Thames, KT1 2DN
Should you require Surrey County Council to pay your contractor directly, you will need to include
a letter stating this to be the case, when sending your invoice. Please note that all payments will
be for works in arrears and no funding will be provided before works commence.
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Your notification must include:
1.
2.
3.
4.
A copy of the invoice
A picture(s) of before and after the installation of the resilience and/ or resistance measure(s)
Details of the bank details you wish the grant claim paid to
A copy bank statement to evidence expenditure
Should your grant claim be in line with the original grant approval (in terms of equipment
purchased and installed at identified costs), we will aim to process and pay the grant claim into
your bank account within 20 working days.
Please note that at some future stage an employee or an agent of Surrey County Council may
visit your premises to ensure the resilience and/ or resistance measures have been installed in
line with the requirements of the grant. If during the inspection it is found that you have not
installed the relevant equipment, or it is no longer in situ, we may seek the recovery of the
original grant funding.
What is the deadline for the project to be completed?
The application form asks you to advise us when you think the measures will be installed. All
RRG support payments must be issued before 31st December 2014, and your works must be
done before then in order that the Council can process your grant claim. The Council expects all
claims to be returned by 18th January 2015.
When will someone visit to inspect that the works have been completed?
A random selection of premises that have received RRG funding will be inspected following
installation of the resilience and/ or resistance measures, and the grant has been paid.
If selected, we will be in contact to arrange a time to visit.
If during the inspection it is found that you have not installed the relevant equipment, or it is no
longer in situ, we may seek the recovery of the original grant funding.
Sources of Further Guidance
Prior to implementing any flood resilience and/ or resistance measures (whether through the
RRG or at your own cost) it is strongly advised that you seek some guidance as to the most
appropriate means of protecting your premises. Flooding can occur for a wide variety of reasons,
and you could install resilience and/ or resistance measures which will make no or very little
difference to protecting your premises in the future. It is very unlikely that Property Level
Protection will prevent future flooding to your home or business, but informed resilience and/ or
resistance measures can reduce the level or risk or damage incurred.
There are a wide range of sources of information available to you: Insurance Company Advice - Your insurance company may be able to offer advice during
an assessment visit, or through a helpline. A number of insurance companies have
established free advisory services following the recent flooding.

Property Protection Adviser Website (www.nationalfloodforum.org.uk/property-levelprotection-community-tool/) - Homeowners and businesses can obtain a tailored report on
the type of flood resilience measures that might be appropriate for their property from the
Defra funded Property-Protection-Adviser website, which will give guidance on the kind of
measures that might need to be fitted and their likely cost. You will be asked a few simple
10
questions about your property and will receive a tailored report that takes into account the
age and type of property.

Environment Agency Website - http://www.environmentagency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/floods/default.aspx

Planned flood defence schemes in your area - The programme of Flood and Coastal Erosion
Risk Management projects is available on the Environment Agency’s website
http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/118129.aspx . The “2014/15
FCRM schemes programme”, a spreadsheet available on that page, shows the approved
programme with funding reserved for 2014/15 on the first tab and indicative funding for
projects in the years 2015/16-2018/19 on the second tab. The list can be filtered by
parliamentary constituency or Regional Flood and Coastal Committee area to identify any
planned schemes that may be relevant to a Repair and Renew Grant application.

Prepare you property for flooding guide - http://a0768b4a8a31e106d8b050dc802554eb38a24458b98ff72d550b.r19.cf3.rackcdn.com/geho1009brdl-e-e.pdf

Guidance on contractors for work involving Insulation or moving boilers – This can be
gained from Action Surrey, free survey and impartial energy advice centre, working with
Councils across Surrey http://www.actionsurrey.org/
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Annex A – Definition of Flood
Section 1 of the Flood & Water Management Act 2010
1(1) “Flood” includes any case where land not normally covered by water becomes covered by
water.
(2) It does not matter for the purpose of subsection (1) whether a flood is caused by:(a) heavy rainfall,
(b) a river overflowing or its banks being breached,
(c) a dam overflowing or being breached,
(d) tidal waters,
(e) groundwater, or
(e) anything else (including any combination of factors).
(3) But “flood” does not include—
(a) a flood from any part of a sewerage system, unless wholly or partly caused by an increase
in the volume of rainwater (including snow and other precipitation) entering or otherwise
affecting the system, or
(b) a flood caused by a burst water main (within the meaning given by section 219 of the
Water Industry Act 1991).
Repair and Renew Grants are for:

Residential properties (including static caravans where it is the primary residence, i.e.
registered as such on the electoral role) where habitable internal areas of the premise (i.e.
not garages and outbuildings) have been damaged by flooding between the 1st December
2013 and the 31st March 2014.

Business (including social enterprise) and charitable organisation properties where internal
areas of the premise which are critical to the day to day operations (i.e. not storage sheds or
warehouses) have been damaged by flooding between the 1st December 2013 and the 31st
March 2014.
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