Agenda item

The Panel received a presentation, which described the Borough’s overall flood risk and provided an overview of the authority’s winter readiness. Members received information about the challenges faced by the authority in delivering flood alleviations’ schemes and specifically around the funding of those projects.

There was a discussion held and the following areas were highlighted;

Sand Bags – Regarding the shelf-life and turnover of sandbags, Members were informed that the Council now had hydro bags in stores as they lasted longer. It was noted that the supplier provided sand bags, which were turned over on a regular basis.

It was explained that the location of companies were in Branton and Thorne, and sandbags could also be dropped off at North Bridge.  It was reported how at the last near miss event, there had been a 4 day waiting time to prepare.  Members heard how the sandbags could be delivered to site so there was no problem in terms of connectivity or being locked in.

Built Environment – Members heard how ensuring that new build housing was not adding pressure to or being built on existing types of flood risks, that sustainable drainage had been brought into planning provision (following the 2007 floods and the Pitt Review) and therefore as part of the consultation for the application, the Council acted as a consultee.  Members were assured that further new guidance was coming under planning but had not yet been released.

Members heard that following the 2019 floods, Defra had released a substantial amount of funding, providing £500 per property (Property Flood or Level Resilience) for a survey to be carried out to find out what the best resilience solutions were for that property to be protected.  It was continued that a further £4,500 was made available as a grant to provide solutions although any remaining money would have to be found by the resident.  The Panel was provided with information on the numbers of households who had followed through with the process and it was acknowledged that there were challenges such as some properties not wanting to engage with the process, some properties being rentals and also due to restrictions arising from the pandemic.  Reference was made to the fact that some estates were made of generic houses and it was clarified that the process and guidelines set by Defra was based on the individual property.

The Chair requested that details of the scheme be sent out to Ward Members to help publicise the scheme.

Health Assessments – Regarding whether there had been a health assessment for residents who had been living in properties impacted by the floods, Members were advised that a response would be sought from colleagues in Public Health.

Resources – Further to an enquiry around how many registered and trained volunteer Flood Wardens were operational, Members were informed that it was a function of the Local Environment Agency (LEA) who administered the scheme.  The Drainage and Street Works Manager offered to provide this information to Members outside of the meeting.

In terms of employment within the Flood Risk Team, it was explained that at the point of the 20019 floods, that there were 5 members of staff.  Following that event, the structure of the team and the budget were reconsidered to expand the capacity of the team to 12 members of staff.  Members heard how the team was split into 2 which consisted of Drainage Maintenance Team (dealing with surface water) and the Flood Risk Team (dealing with larger schemes).  It was noted that the full 12 members had never been fully recruited (currently operating at around 10/11) which was possibly due to less competitive salaries being offered compared to other authorities and organisations.  It was acknowledged that there were challenges with recruiting engineers. It was estimated that there was around 10 experienced Flood Liaison Officers. 

Reference was made to a Panel Members own experience of the flood events, the type of response it had been felt had been provided as a Council and what had or hadn’t been learnt from the previous floods.  The Drainage and Street Works Manager spoke about changes that had taken place following each flood event and the circumstances some of which were outside the authority’s control. Members were reminded that the authority was not an emergency response organisation and assurances were provided that the Council’s own employees would not be put at risk by entering flood waters.  It was suggested that Members may benefit and develop a better understanding from observing a scenario in operation, by contacting the Emergency Planning Team.  Reference was made to the preparation that had taken place in February 2021 and what could be achieved with notice. 

Later in the meeting, the union representative sought information about staff members entering flood waters. 

Members were informed that with the 2019 floods, the Council had been more reactive due to the late forecast.  The Panel was told that all residents were able to register with the Environmental Agency (EA) warning system, which would advise of risk of flooding based on postcodes and provide updates.  It was recognised that there was better information and communication in place with the Near Miss event in 2021.  It was commented that it would be helpful for engineers and residents in Bentley if there were flood warnings in place.

Community Engagement for Newly Elected Ward Members – Reference was made to the planned community engagement that took place during October 2020 and it was asked whether this would be repeated for new Ward Members.  The Panel was informed that the last report identified all the community areas and highlighted all the work that had been undertaken such as gully cleansing, watercourse clearing, sandbag removal and emergency work done on repairs.  It was explained that the Council was now at a point where schemes were now being undertaken, and the intention was to set out a list of all the schemes in the different areas, the amount of allocated funding that has been secured and finally funding gap for each area and flood alleviation schemes.  Members were told that rather than area-based consultation, there would be scheme-by-scheme consultation through meeting with representatives from localised flood groups to discuss Council plans.  It was added that this would be reflective of how communication and consultation would be handled going forward.  It was commented that there were no plans around doing something specific such as through the newsletters although it was felt there was potential to consolidate that.  

RESOLVED that the Panel notes the information provided.