AN EAGERLY anticipated report into North Tawton's flooding problems will be the subject of a public meeting in the town tonight (Thursday.)

Flood-hit residents will hear a presentation of the findings of a £20,000 feasibility study commissioned by West Devon Borough Council at North Tawton Primary School from 7.30pm.

The report, which has taken three months to put together, identifies the source of flooding problems in the town, who is responsible for what and recommends solutions.

It comes the same week as Devon County Council announced more money for flood defences in the county.

Town clerk Alison Baker said she hoped the £20,000 had been spent wisely and looked forward to the report's contents.

'We are grateful to everybody for getting this report out to the people as quickly as possible,' she said. 'We did not expect it before the end of January because the consultants wanted to do further investigations.'

The town council campaigned for a report to be commissioned because it was fed up with the authorities 'passing the buck' on the issue.

An old sewerage system, together with the river running through the town, and a complex system of streams have contributed to the flooding problems in North Tawton.

Some residents spent just a few weeks in their properties last year after floods hit their homes three times.

Mrs Baker said until it had been identified what agency or authority was responsible for what there could be no solution.

'We also realise that funding sources cannot be dipped into these days without a feasibility study being done,' she said.

'But had it not been for West Devon Borough Council we would not have got this far because nobody else wanted to know.'

Press officer for the borough council, Alison Stoneham said the report was being put before the residents of North Tawton before anyone else and their views would be taken on board.

'We feel because the residents are the ones that have been affected by flooding they should be the first to know what the recommendations are,' she said.

Devon County Council revealed this week it would be investing an extra £372,000 in flood defence, trebling the 2001/02 increase earmarked by the Government for flood defence for the county.

Responding to public concern, the council wants £250,000 of that increase to be guaranteed spending on flood defences in Devon and will be negotiating with the Environment Agency about how that might be achieved.

The council's leader Brian Greenslade said this week the Government's allocation of a 3.3 per cent increase this year in Devon County Council's funding settlement for flood defence was 'totally inadequate.'

'Our contribution to the South West's regional flood defence fund is by far the highest at 46 per cent,' he said.

'But since 1995 only £4.9-million has actually been spent in Devon compared with nearly £13-million in Cornwall.'