Council leader thanks flood volunteers

Council Leader Richard Farnell has written to thank more than 100 volunteers who helped with the clean-up

Councillor Richard Farnell has written to more than 100 volunteers who helped with the clean-up operation after the Boxing Day floods.

The letter thanks the volunteers for the contributions they made during the response to the floods that badly affected a number of areas across the borough. It also acknowledges that without their contributions the clear-up operation would have been far more difficult and taken a lot longer.

Councillor Farnell, the leader of Rochdale Borough Council, said: “As a council we wanted to let the volunteers that we are aware of know that their selfless contributions had not gone unnoticed.”

“Without them I am sure that we would have faced an even harder battle to get our communities back on their feet.

"In Wardleworth and Littleborough especially we saw communities rallying round to help those whose lives had been turned upside down by the devastating floods. There will, of course, be many others that we do not know about so I want to say to them that I am truly grateful for their contributions too.”

Rochdale was the first flood-affected council in Greater Manchester to set-up financial support packages for residents and businesses. Since 26 December hundreds of qualifying homes and businesses have been given payments of £500 and additional support has been arranged for those that need it.

Councillor Farnell said: “We moved quickly to try and get people back on their feet but the community also moved quickly to help us. That shows the best of Rochdale – a borough that I am proud to lead.”