Somerset has £50 million to spend on reducing flood risk, with the first measures due before winter. For communities around Glastonbury, Street, Wells and Shepton Mallet, the programme includes opportunities for local flood protection projects, more drainage maintenance and support to prepare for emergencies.

Somerset Council's executive agreed the programme on Wednesday, 23 September, following the government's funding announcement in June. It brings together 15 projects, ranging from major river defences to smaller improvements designed with residents in flood-affected towns and villages.

For anyone who has watched water approach their front door, or found their usual route cut off, the question is what will actually change locally. Here is what has been announced, what should happen first and what still needs deciding.

The biggest local opportunity: £10m for community projects

The largest community-focused allocation is an initial £10m for the council's My Community programme. This will work with towns and villages that have experienced flooding in recent years to agree measures suited to their particular problems.

Those measures could include repairing existing defences, improving maintenance, installing protection for individual properties and providing better flood warnings. The council says there is already very high demand from town and parish councils and flood groups, so every proposed scheme will need to be assessed.

Council officers are engaging with local clerks and flood wardens to develop proposals, with work in the first phase of communities intended to begin by spring 2027. The published programme does not yet identify separate My Community schemes for Glastonbury, Street, Wells or Shepton Mallet.

What should happen before this winter?

Ahead of winter, the council has announced £500,000 for more frequent gully clearance in areas most prone to flooding. Another £100,000 will go to Somerset Prepared, alongside £50,000 for emergency response teams.

The Somerset Prepared funding will support small grants for community emergency equipment, including radios, tools and protective clothing, alongside first aid training. The emergency response allocation will help provide communications equipment and power packs so teams can check on stranded households and run information points in affected communities.

These measures are intended to improve preparation and response when flooding happens. The larger construction and community schemes will take longer to develop and deliver.

Can local groups apply for help?

Community groups developing emergency arrangements can find application forms and guidance through Somerset Prepared's funding support page. Previous grants have supported training, equipment and volunteers helping to deliver emergency plans.

For larger local flood projects, the council is working through clerks and flood wardens to develop My Community proposals. Town and parish councils and existing flood groups are therefore a useful starting point for communities wanting to raise a particular problem.

What about flooded roads and blocked drains?

Across the two-year programme, an initial £1m is earmarked for highway drainage repairs, gully clearance and work on a road closure warning system. That includes work beyond the immediate clearance planned before this winter.

A further £1m is proposed for more local flood warning systems. The aim is to give communities more time to prepare when flooding threatens.

What is planned for the Levels and Moors?

The programme includes initial allocations of £3m for additional river maintenance, £1m for dredging and desilting, and £3m for pumping improvements. The pumping work includes Curry Moor, Dunball, Northmoor Green and Saltmoor, while the precise locations of additional dredging are still to be confirmed.

There is also £150,000 proposed for reviewing how water levels are managed. A pilot catchment study is intended to inform a wider approach across the Levels and Moors.

These schemes concern the operation of the wider drainage network. The programme does not establish a specific benefit for every nearby town or village.

Will drainage on new housing developments be checked?

An initial £100,000 is proposed for a study into whether sustainable drainage systems are working as intended. These include attenuation ponds and storage tanks designed to manage surface water.

The findings are intended to inform Somerset's new Local Plan. This is a review of how the systems perform, rather than an announcement of repairs at particular developments.

Where else is the money going?

Some of the largest named construction projects are elsewhere in the county. They include £7.5m for River Tone defences in Taunton, £6m for work at Firepool Weir and £5m to replace Vinney Bridge at Fordgate.

The project figures are initial estimates, and some schemes may only reach the design or planning stage during this programme. Of the overall £50m grant, £42.5m is for capital works and £7.5m covers revenue costs, including the staff and administration needed to deliver them.

Why is there a deadline?

The council's programme report gives a spending deadline of 30 September 2028, with an extension possible if agreed with the government. That timetable is one reason the council is prioritising work that can be delivered quickly or is already well advanced.

Projects requiring lengthy design work, permissions or construction may not be completed within those two years. The programme can help develop those schemes so they are better prepared for future funding.

Does this mean homes will be safe from flooding?

Council leader Bill Revans acknowledged that the programme could not remove flood risk altogether. He said: "This has been widely welcomed as an initiative that will bring security, I hope, to a number of people who in Somerset feel threatened by the flood events that we see all too frequently.

"We know that there is no guarantee that people won't flood, but the more we can do to prevent that from happening, to keep those events as short as possible, and to make sure people are looked after during those events and supported, especially in their communities, the better it will be."

Find out more at an event in Street

The Somerset Prepared Community Resilience Day takes place at Millfield School on Wednesday, 21 October. It will bring together councils, volunteers, specialists and businesses for talks, workshops and demonstrations.

The event forms part of Somerset Flood Awareness Month, with information and activities also planned at libraries during October. Local councils and community groups can find out more through the Somerset Prepared event details.

Includes reporting from the LDRS/Daniel Mumby

More local stories

• Glastonbury mum and six-year-old take on charity challenge
• Glastonbury factory welcomes workers back after 50 years

Subscribe to the free Glastonbury Nub News newsletter Get the biggest Glastonbury stories straight to your inbox.