FLOODING funding to Worcestershire County Council is facing a shock 33 per cent cut next year, sparking fury.

Critics say the county risks 'going backwards' on flood risk after the Government revealed it was slashing a £117,000 fund to a paltry £78,000.

Councils like Worcestershire have a legal duty to take a lead in managing and investigating flooding in their area including drainage problems, ponds, flash flooding, ditches and "non-major" watercourses.

They are also responsible for drawing up flooding strategies and liaising with districts and parishes on emergency planning.

Worcestershire's cut is because a national £15 million kitty from DEFRA (the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) to all councils is being slashed to £10 million next year.

DEFRA says the reduction, which is for funds primarily spent on helping councils "manage and plan" for floods, has been planned for several months and that local authorities can top it up with their own resources if they wish.

But critics including Worcester-based flooding expert Mary Dhonau have hit out at the cut, calling it a "huge" blow.

"Local authorities are meant to be taking the lead in flooding but I don't know how on earth Worcestershire will cope with this reduction," she said.

"I work with a lot of councils and they are horrified, they are all facing significant cuts.

"They have to develop a flood risk strategy, deal with surface water flooding, ditches, everything classed as a 'non-major' watercourse and of course flooding problems generally get reported to them - all of this is hugely demanding."

DEFRA says next month's autumn statement will see the announcement of a string of major investments in flood defences across the UK as part of a six-year programme with the Environment Agency.

A spokesman said: "We absolutely recognise the importance of tackling flooding which is why we are investing £3.2 billion in flood management and defences.

"This is more than ever before and half a billion pounds more than in the previous parliament.

"The funding to 'lead local flood authorities' was always going to be initially higher in order to allow them to gather information on local flood risk and understand how to manage it."

The Environment Agency is responsible for all the river flooding, in other words all the major watercourses.

The county council is spending around £1.5 million on flooding alleviation work this year, and has an additional £700,000 from the Government for a scheme at New Road.

In addition, since 2007 more than £10 million has been spent on flood resilience in Worcestershire including Environment Agency funding.

But bosses at County Hall say the grant cut is a "huge disappointment" for Worcestershire.

Councillor Anthony Blagg, county council cabinet member for the environment, said: "The funding has been used to enable the council to undertake its new responsibilities under the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.

"This includes activities such as the creation of a flood risk strategy and a new surface water management plan.

"This work is underway and considered amongst the highest priority for the well-being and prosperity of county.

"Therefore, the funding reduction has been seen as a huge disappointment, which has led to the county council supplementing the grant with around £40,000 from its budget to ensure this work can continue.

"In addition, the county council has been successful in securing additional funds for flood alleviation through the recent Strategic Economic Plan (SEP) bid which will see capital funding used for projects such as the forthcoming New Road flood scheme."

Back in 2007, the worst-ever floods in Worcestershire damaged 4,500 homes but since then £12.5 million has gone into new defences in areas like Worcester and Kempsey.

This February, in comparison 163 properties were affected.

But in Severn Stoke the village has yet to secure protection despite 19 homes, the Rose and Crown and St Denys Church flooding in February.

Villager Jayne Whittall, 51, of Church Lane said: "Everyone just wants to see things get better."