The recovery process : Cumbria County Council

On the morning of Monday 23 November Chief Constable Craig Mackey formally handed responsibility for co-ordinating the flood response to Cumbria County Council’s new Chief Executive Jill Stannard. The incident moved from its critical phase, and the recovery effort began in earnest.

Preparations for the recovery had started even as the floodwaters swirled through Cockermouth Main Street. The county council had established a recovery group drawing together a range of partners to analyse the likely infrastructure, welfare, environmental and economic impacts.

The importance of this preparation cannot be underestimated. It was a crucial factor in enabling the recovery effort to make a very quick impact once the emergency phase was over.

The county was able to put in place a well rehearsed recovery plan with a clear governance structure which drew on the skills and expertise from a wide range of organisations from across the county. Nearly 50 different organisations and agencies are represented on the various recovery groups, with many more groups and individuals directly involved in delivering help on the ground.

In the immediate aftermath of the floods a strategic recovery group chaired by the county council’s Director of Environment Marie Fallon met on a daily basis. Beneath it four sub-groups got to work tackling key issues in relation to business recovery, welfare, infrastructure, and the environment.

A virtual communication group co-ordinated public information; and invaluable project management support across all areas was provided by a team from Sellafield plc and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.

The strategic recovery group worked closely with central government, assisted greatly by a cross departmental ministerial group chaired by the Local Government Minister Rose Winterton MP.

The best way to fully assess what has been achieved in the recovery process is to look at the benchmark dates of