Flooding Support for Residents

Rate Relief Schemes for Residents

Land and Property Services (LPS) can assist residents experiencing financial difficulties.  It is essential that ratepayers impacted by flooding contact LPS as soon as possible to discuss options that best suit their circumstances.

Click here to view the LPS webinar presentation which outlines different rate relief options: Land & Property Services Online Information Session

Land & Property Services
T: 0300 200 7801 (calls charged at local rate)
Text Relay: 18001 0300 200 7801
W: www.finance-ni.gov.uk/contacts/contact-land-property-services

Rate Relief for Households

There is a Rating of Empty Homes exclusion for homes affected by flooding. 

Download an application form from nidirect website: www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/rating-empty-homes

SEFA Scheme

The Emergency Payment scheme for flooding is active. Householders who have suffered severe inconvenience from flooding can claim £1,000 payment through our Council.

Householders can inform the Council of the impact of a flooding event by one the following methods:

Flooding Incident Line – 0300 2000 100 for assistance relating to the flooding incident, including wider issues, e.g. provision of sandbags, and information and access to the SEFA scheme.

Direct contact can also be made to NMDDC Environmental Health by email: ehealth@nmandd.org or telephone 0330 137 4024 by householder/or representative to provide contact details, location and discuss the impacts of the flooding incident. Due to the anticipated volume of referrals it is advised to email in the first instance and a call back service is in place.

Contact must be made as soon as possible following the flooding event (and no later than 7 calendar days). The SEFA scheme is now open until 16 November 2023

Finance Support

The Department for Communities’ Finance Support service is available for people who find themselves in a financial crisis, including those experiencing financial difficulty as a result of a disaster, e.g. fire, flooding, etc. The service provides financial help/support through the provision of Discretionary Support, Social Fund and Universal Credit Contingency Fund. 

Information on all of the help available and eligibility criteria can be found online at https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/campaigns/finance-support

Redundancy Service

The Department for Communities, through its Employer Services Branch, provides help, advice, guidance and support to both businesses (employers) and people (employees) who are facing redundancy. 

Information on the Department’s Redundancy Service, including a range of online resources, can be found at https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/topics/findingstaff/redundancy-service

Staff within Finance Support and Employer Services Branch are happy to engage or attend any relevant meetings to provide details on the help and support available.

Make the Call 

To make sure you're getting all the benefits, services and supports you're entitled to, make the call to
0800 232 1271. 

In 2022/23 Make the Call supported 1,317 residents in the Newry, Mourne and Down District Council area to claim c£6.48m of additional benefits they had not previously been claiming, through providing individual confidential needs assessments. 
 
Make The Call offers a telephony service and has a team of Community Outreach Officers who work from regional locations across Northern Ireland to conduct home visits and provide face to face assistance and support with benefit claim completion. 

Details of how to contact Make the Call can be found at: www.nidirect.gov.uk/campaigns/unclaimed-benefits