Tomorrow marks the last day on which Defra will accept applications for money under its flood recovery fund.

Farmers who were affected by flooding are eligible for grants of upto £35,000 under the fund to help get their land back into production or make repairs. Defra has said that it will accept retroactive applications, to reimburse farmers for work they have already had to undertake.

However, although the government set aside £10 million for its two-phase recovery fund in February, Defra has only paid out just over a quarter of the total recovery pot.

Farmers had complained that applying for funding had been made too burdensome, but Defra officials said they have been turning round correctly completed applications in under two weeks and, having consulted with the NFU and applicants, had made changes to simplify the process between phases one and two.

These changes included scrapping the need for three quotes for a number of commonly requested items, such as grass seed and fencing, with the introduction of a list of maximum guide prices for those approving funding requests.  

Even so, with the deadline one day away, Defra has received only 229 applications under the scheme, for a total of £2.69 million.