The £2.7 million Ponteland Flood Alleviation Scheme in Northumberland, England, is the first project in the country to get off the ground out of the 22 flood defence projects to benefit from a £170 million government funding boost.
The investment brings forward work on flood defence schemes across the country which will drive economic growth and better protect thousands of homes from flooding.
The contractor, BAM Nuttall, started work on the project in late August and completion of the project is set for next Spring.
Almost all of the people employed by BAM to work on the project are local.
According to the Environment Agency, the £170million government funding boost is on top of the record £5.2 billion government investment to create around 2,000 new flood and coastal defences to better protect 336,000 properties across England by 2027.
The EA has also set out its vision for a nation ready for, and resilient to, flooding in its National Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy.