Walsall Council receive EA funding to reduce town centre flood risk

A grant of £175,000 has been given to a council to replace a culvert and reduce the risk of businesses nearby flooding.

Walsall Council has received a further £175,000 grant in aid funding from the Environment Agency (EA) to progress the replacement of the Ford Brook culvert at Tower Street in the town centre.

The aim of the scheme is to remove the deteriorated section of culvert and reduce the risk of flooding to a number of businesses in the town centre. The scheme will also enable the lifting of current restrictions on the size and type of vehicles that can use the road over the culvert.

This injection of funding follows £25,000 of funding from the EA which has paid for investigations to inform the scheme design last year.

Subject to EA approval of the final design, the council hope to complete the scheme by March 2021.

Councillor Oliver Butler, portfolio holder for Clean and Green Services said: “This investment is very much welcomed. Aside from funding the much-needed replacement of the culvert, this investment will mean that local businesses can be reassured by the reduced flood risk and will no doubt be grateful to have one less thing to worry about during these challenging times.”