The following is a press release provided by the Vale of Glamorgan Council.

Senior Council officers had an encouraging meeting with their counterparts in Welsh Government this week to discuss possible funding arrangements to protect up to 200 properties in Dinas Powys from the future effects of flooding.

Over 100 properties in Dinas Powys and Sully were flooded internally on 23rd December 2020 and the Council has already secured £149,270 from Welsh Government via 'small scale flood risk management grant' to progress the implementation of property flood protection measures to 22 individual properties in the Sully area which will reduce the risk of flood water entering homes using a combination of products such as flood doors.

Officers are urgently completing a report to Welsh Government detailing the investigations into the recent flooding in December last year.

The report will comprise specific details relating to flooding history, analysis of the rainfall event which occurred and possible or likely causes which gave rise to the flooding as well as identifying the relevant responsibilities of the risk management authorities and the role of any other authority.

Individual property level protection can provide additional assurance and protection to residents, some of whom are living in constant fear of being flooded every time that it rains heavily, however, not all properties are necessarily suited to the implementation of such measures.

Cllr Peter King, Vale of Glamorgan Council Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Services and Transport, said: "The impacts of flooding are devastating and the Council is keen to work with relevant risk management authorities to reduce the risk of domestic property flooding in these areas in the future.

"Excessive rainfall over a short period and consequential runoff from agricultural catchments adjoining residential developments, appears to be the main reason for the flooding in Sully, whereas flooding in Dinas Powys appears to be largely related to capacity of the river Cadoxton.

"Our officers were successful in bidding to the Welsh Government's 'small scale flood risk management grant' scheme for the Sully flooding to implement property flood protection measures and, whilst the flooding in Dinas Powys does not relate to an asset for which the Council is responsible and involves in excess of 100 properties, they have now been given the green light from Welsh Government officials to submit a funding application for an outline business case aimed at progressing similar property level protection works in Dinas Powys in partnership with NRW.

"My hope is that, if the bid is successful, it would give residents in Dinas Powys a certain level of property protection whilst Natural Resources Wales considers and implements longer term solutions to reduce the flood risk in the area posed by the river."

The Council is due to submit its application to Welsh Government for funding in Spring /summer 2021.