Community BlueScapes is funded through the Flood and Coastal Resilience Innovation Programme of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is a six year project from April 2021 to March 2027. Regrettably it is not being renewed, although there is lots of work still to do.
Defra will not provide further funding, so the project board are on the lookout for alternative funding. They are working closely with the Beverley Brook Catchment Partnership to capture evidence of the work so far, the strength of the partnership, and to seek Expressions Of Interest for potential future funding.
The end-programme reporting will present both everything that has been learned and done, and also the opportunities that have not been progressed, or that have identified throughout the project.
If funding to continue Community BlueScapes as a partnership cannot be found, the lessons learned and future project opportunities will be absorbed into ongoing work at each of the partner organisations (Richmond Council, Barnes Common Ltd and WWT), with alternative funding sources to be applied for (e.g. funding from Thames Water, Greater London Authority, Lottery etc).
Project Leader Lizzie Bunker is continuing at Richmond and Wandsworth councils as Lead Local Flood Authority Manager, so she will be ensuring that future Community BlueScapes opportunities are retained in the pipeline of projects.
