Many of the projects are located in communities that suffered from flooding during winter 2015, with over 9,000 homes due to benefit from improved defences.

The extra funding is in addition the government’s commitment to invest a record £2.6bn over six years up to 2021 to better protect 300,000 homes across the country.

Funding will support the development of 11 projects in the Northern Powerhouse, including seven in Yorkshire, four in Cumbria and Lancashire and two in the North East.

Some £19m is set to go to Calder Valley, where the Mytholmroyd, Hebden Bridge and Brighouse schemes will be developed.

With this new boost, the two projects at Hedbden Bridge and Brighouse are now to be developed, with work due to begin next year.

Communities in Yorkshire will also receive additional funding with more money for the Tadcaster Flood Alleviation Scheme and additional funding for defences at Sowerby Bridge.

Cumbria and Lancashire are due to receive the second largest amount of funding, with £22.8m now available to support four flood projects in Kendal, Egremont, Flimby and Preston and South Ribble.

The proposed scheme for Kendal involves three phases, of which the first will provide a 1 in 50 level of protection for 1,480 homes and 1,151 businesses.

In Essex, the River Roding project at Shonks Mill will better protect 550 homes in Woodford and its surrounding areas, while in Lincolnshire, the Lincoln Defences project is set to reduce flood risk to 1,842 homes and 424 businesses.

Emma Howard Boyd, Chair of the Environment Agency, said: “We will work closely with these communities to design and build projects which not only reduce flood risk but which also benefit wildlife and the local economy for decades to come.”

By the end of this year, the government will set out its policies to better prepare the country for flood and coastal erosion in a government policy statement.

Informed by this policy, the Environment Agency will update its national strategy for flood and coastal erosion risk management, which sets out a long term plan for tackling, preparing for and adapting to the additional risks that climate change will bring.