The city is to benefit from its share of £100 million funding for frequently flooded areas.

Brighton and Hove City Council has been allocated £250,000 to support a new surface water scheme.

The funding is set to improve flood protection for more than 2,300 propeties across the country.

In Brighton, the allocation will support a surface water scheme at Preston Park.

It will be used to provide a network of sustainable drainage systems (SuDS), rain gardens and attenuation to work in partnership with Southern Water to reduce flooding further down the catchment.

The council will then to consider options which provide a net biodiversity gain and how to provide a plastic free solution.

In 2018, Brighton and Hove City Council declared a climate emergency and surface water management plays an important part in the council’s response to this climate emergency.

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The government allowance targets communities where ten or more properties have flooded at least twice in the last ten years.

These communities are often smaller and can face barriers to access funding due to the relative complexity and cost of building flood defences compared to the size of the community.

“We know only too well the devastating impact that flooding can have on communities and businesses, as we face more extreme weather brought about by climate change,” said Rebecca Pow,  Environment Minister.

“I am determined that we do whatever we can to prevent flooding that affects so many towns and villages across the country.

“This much-needed funding will go a long way to support those whose homes and livelihoods are repeatedly threatened by flooding and forms a key part of our record £5.2 billion investment by 2027 to protect communities in England better.”  

Caroline Douglass, executive director for flood and coastal risk management at the Environment Agency, said: “Increased flooding is just one of the impacts of climate change we are seeing in the UK and around the world.

“This funding will help better protect homes and businesses at risk from repeated flood incidents across the country.”