Barton to New Holland Tidal Flood Alleviation Scheme
Flooding is a long-standing problem for the communities of Barton, Barrow, and New Holland. Previous tidal flood incidents have impacted lives, businesses, and homes. Highlighting the need for improved tidal flood defenses and for communities in the area to be better prepared. We are working with project partners to develop a sustainable approach to reduce the impacts of tidal flooding, which is adaptable and resilient to the impacts of climate change.
On this page you will find the latest project news and progress updates, details of the project objectives and how you can get involved.
Make sure to register to Engagement HQ to access the tools on this page, and subscribe to be added to the email list for this project.
The Barton to New Holland Tidal Flood Alleviation Scheme
Climate change is increasing the frequency and size of flood surges, a dangerous rise in water level, and therefore, we need to adapt and improve existing defences as well as build new defences to help increase resilience and reduce the impact of major tidal flood incidents. The Environment Agency is currently developing a new long-term strategy for managing flood risk around the Humber Estuary. The strategy provides an outline programme of the work needed to maintain the estuary’s flood defences for the next 100 years. One of the projects within this wider strategy is the Barton to New Holland Flood Alleviation Scheme.
The Scheme aims to develop an approach to alleviate tidal flooding, which has communities and sustainability at its core. The communities of Barton to New Holland have been identified as one of 27 areas where defences need to be improved. Tidal flood incidents such as on the 5th of December 2013, also highlight the need for improved tidal flood defences and increased community resilience within these areas. As a member of these communities or with interest in the area, we want to hear your experiences and insights to build our understanding of what's important to you.
We want to hear from you
We recognise the importance of involving local communities and stakeholders throughout this journey. Your experiences and insights are vital to shaping the scheme and ensuring it reflects what matters most to you. Explore our timeline on the right-hand side to see our progress and the steps ahead. You can also share your thoughts on the project and by commenting on our newsfeed or asking questions below.
- News | Check our newsfeed below to get updates on the latest ecology work, project meetings, and site visits and provide your own comments.
- Map | Let us know what you love about the area, any exciting ecology finds or let us know about an issue.
- Questions or Enquiries | If you have any questions about the scheme, use the form below, or contact us using the enquiries email provided.
- Events | Check back for updates on the next community events, coming Summer 2026.
-
Resilience Advisory Group
The Resilience Advisory Group (RAG) is a forum for dialogue between the project team and a range of stakeholders including local councils, organisations, and community groups that represent the interests of the community and the area. Each quarter a RAG meeting or update is held to update on project progress and to hear from the RAG membership.
On September 25th we held a RAG meeting to update the group on the progress of the project. The agenda for the session focused on sharing the approval of the Outline Business Case, requesting ideas for environmental and social improvements, and updates on ground investigation works.
Outline Business Case | The approval of this document is a major project milestone and enables us to move forward into detailed design of the project to develop a Full Business Case.
Environmental and Social Improvements | All EA projects should leave the environment in a better state than before by delivering improvements. If you have any ideas for environmental or social improvements, leave a comment or contact us using the enquiries on the banner on the right of the page.
Ground Investigations | Ground investigations aim to understand subsurface conditions, identify potential hazards, and provide essential data for safe design and construction.
-
Site Visits
On September 15th, 2025, the Barton to New Holland project team conducted a site visit along the embankment path around Barton upon Humber. This visit was organised as part of the project's transition into the detailed design phase.
Primarily, it aimed to introduce new members of the team to the physical environment of the project, allowing them to gain firsthand experience of the site’s layout, conditions, and context. By walking the route and observing critical features of the landscape, the team were able to deepen their understanding of the area’s constraints and opportunities.
-
February 2024 Community Events
Our project team held three community drop-in events in New Holland, Barton, and Barrow Haven in February of 2024. The purpose of these events was to share our viable solution and enhancement measures and to gather feedback from the general public to guide the design and hear from the community on what is important to you.
At the community drop-in events, we spoke to over 190 residents, business owners, local councillors, and members of the wider community. As well as sharing the scheme’s current proposals, we provided updates on our environmental surveys, information on ground investigations, and explained how this project fits into the wider Humber 2100+ strategy.
The feedback collected at the both the events and our virtual engagement platforms has fed into the scheme’s outline design and helped to determine the best approach to support flood resilience of the area.
Enquiries
Photos
Sign Up for Flood Warnings
