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Partnership approach best for flood risk

28 July 2008

The disastrous floods during the summer of 2007 caused an estimated £3 billion worth of damage and resulted in untold misery for many thousands of people.

The sheer weight of daily media reporting, especially in Hull and Tewkesbury, pushed flooding to the top of the political agenda.

One year on and the momentum has continued culminating in the publication in June 2008 of both the PPS25 – Development and Flood Risk Practice Guide and Sir Michael Pitt’s Review into the Summer 2007 floods.

The Guide complements PPS25 published in 2006 and through the use of case studies, diagrams and pro formas seeks to demonstrate how Local Planning Authorities (“LPA’s”) “deliver the national policies in PPS25 in the light of their own varying circumstances”.

It is a “living document” which will be reviewed every six months and updated on the CLG website.

A five step “Flood Risk Management Hierarchy” is included in the Guide namely:

  1. Assess - Carry out an appropriate Flood Risk Assessment.
  2. Avoid - Allocate development to areas of least flood risk by the use of a sequential approach to development.
  3. Substitute - Less vulnerable development types should be substituted for those incompatible with the degree of flood risk. 
  4. Control - Implement Flood Risk Management Measures such as sustainable urban drainage systems and flood defences. 
  5. Mitigation - Implement measures to mitigate residual risks such as flood resilient construction.

The clear aim of policy is to keep all development out of medium and high flood risk areas. There is an “Exception Test” to be applied where that is not possible but the LPA or Developer will need to demonstrate that the development outweighs the flood risk; is on previously developed land and where possible is safe so as to reduce the flood
risk overall.

A “partnership” approach to flood prevention is advocated with LPA’s, the Environment Agency, and Developers working together to identify potential areas of risk. While this is to be applauded, the effectiveness or otherwise of that approach is ultimately dependent upon available resources and the goodwill of the LPA and the Environment Agency officers to discuss individual schemes prior to any planning application being submitted.

The lack of a Strategic Flood Risk Assessment is also likely to raise particular difficulties in applying the advice effectively in the short and medium term.

For now, the safest advice to developers is to collate as much information as is reasonably available on flood risk issues in the specific development area concerned and to engage in early dialogue with the LPA and the Environment Agency on the extent of and detail required in any flood risk assessment.

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Tim Willis

Associate
T: 08700 86 4095
I: +44 (0)121 625 4095
E: tim.willis@shoosmiths.co.uk