Latest News

To see our progress to date, please watch our latest videos. The first video explains the need for the scheme, what the scheme includes and our project ambitions. In our second video, you can find out more about floodwater storage.

Flood storage areas for further investigation

As mentioned in our spring newsletter, the project team have been identifying areas that could be used to store floodwater to reduce flood risk across the Thames Valley. We initially assessed over 700 locations for flood storage and have now narrowed these down to 17 areas for further investigation. These are locations where a flood storage area could be effective in reducing flood risk, while minimising impact on the local area. We are gaining a better understanding of which of these 17 areas will continue to be of interest. We will then work with local communities to understand the impacts and opportunities of a potential flood storage area near them. The 17 locations are shown as green dots on the map. You can read our report for more information on the process of site selection.


Areas that would benefit from reduced flood risk will be seen mainly in downstream communities along the River Thames. We are aware this means the main benefits from the flood storage areas may not be felt by those most impacted by the flood storage areas. There will be opportunities for local benefits such as wildlife habitat creation and recreational spaces. We will work with local communities to identify where this could be done and seek funding opportunities to support this.

Cost benefit review

We are now reviewing the costs and flood risk benefits of using individual or small groups of flood storage sites to reduce flood risk. These groups are made up of potential flood storage areas on different tributaries of the River Thames. This cost review is a normal step for any large project. In this work, we are comparing the cost of building flood storage areas against the potential to reduce financial and societal damage from flooding downstream. This will help us determine whether a scheme is good value for money. For a scheme to go ahead, the benefits must significantly outweigh the costs.

Our initial findings from the review show that overall the benefits of the 17 sites only slightly exceed the costs. Because the difference is small, it is possible that we will not get approval to continue looking at large scale flood storage across the Thames Valley catchment. Once this review is completed, it is likely that we will have 3 options to consider. Each of these options would need to gain partner support, funding and, further down the line, planning approvals.

Option 1: With this option, we would continue investigating all 17 locations. We would engage with landowners and communities to understand local conditions better. We could identify several locations that can work together to reduce flood risk across the Thames Valley catchment. Because the benefits are only slightly higher than the costs based on current information, progressing with this option seems unlikely.

Option 2: As we continue our investigations, we may find that only a small number of flood storage areas are possible. They would still need to be cost beneficial to gain approvals. At this stage, our studies have been based on desk assessments alone, so we would collaborate with local communities, landowners and farmers to gather more information about the area. Options 2 and 3 are equally likely to go forward at this stage.

Option 3: Our work has shown that flood storage is important to reducing the flood risk of the Thames catchment at the scale needed in the face of climate change. However, we may find that the delivery of multiple flood storage areas under one scheme will not work. We will use the work we have done though the scheme to inform other future flood risk mitigation projects and partnership working in the area. Options 2 and 3 are equally likely to go forward at this stage.

Natural Flood Management

All the options we are considering include helping to connect the natural flood management work already happening across the catchment. We are working to identify how we can best support natural flood management initiatives.

This could include:

  • Collecting and sharing data to build on existing understanding of how much natural flood management can reduce the risk of flooding to areas downstream.
  • Helping to make funding options for landowners clearer.
  • Bringing everyone together to share lessons and best practices.
  • Delivering NFM as part of our flood risk management and environment programmes, in partnership with other organisations

Timeline


This timeline shows the main project milestones. These timescales are approximate and may change as the project develops.

As with any large project, it will go through a series of approvals and will need funding from government and partners for each stage. We expect the current stage of the project, which began in 2023, to take about 2 years. After this, we would require further funding and approval for the project to progress. Beyond this, project timescales are difficult to specify as our findings will influence the direction of the project.

Planning for engagement when we are not exactly sure which direction the project will take is not easy. We are currently planning engagement in late Autumn 2024, but this date may change as we learn more. To read more about our engagement plans, please check out page 6 of our summer newsletter.


Contact us

To find out how to keep up to date with our latest news, visit our Contact Us page.

To view any of our previous newsletters, follow the links at the top of the page.


To see our progress to date, please watch our latest videos. The first video explains the need for the scheme, what the scheme includes and our project ambitions. In our second video, you can find out more about floodwater storage.

Flood storage areas for further investigation

As mentioned in our spring newsletter, the project team have been identifying areas that could be used to store floodwater to reduce flood risk across the Thames Valley. We initially assessed over 700 locations for flood storage and have now narrowed these down to 17 areas for further investigation. These are locations where a flood storage area could be effective in reducing flood risk, while minimising impact on the local area. We are gaining a better understanding of which of these 17 areas will continue to be of interest. We will then work with local communities to understand the impacts and opportunities of a potential flood storage area near them. The 17 locations are shown as green dots on the map. You can read our report for more information on the process of site selection.


Areas that would benefit from reduced flood risk will be seen mainly in downstream communities along the River Thames. We are aware this means the main benefits from the flood storage areas may not be felt by those most impacted by the flood storage areas. There will be opportunities for local benefits such as wildlife habitat creation and recreational spaces. We will work with local communities to identify where this could be done and seek funding opportunities to support this.

Cost benefit review

We are now reviewing the costs and flood risk benefits of using individual or small groups of flood storage sites to reduce flood risk. These groups are made up of potential flood storage areas on different tributaries of the River Thames. This cost review is a normal step for any large project. In this work, we are comparing the cost of building flood storage areas against the potential to reduce financial and societal damage from flooding downstream. This will help us determine whether a scheme is good value for money. For a scheme to go ahead, the benefits must significantly outweigh the costs.

Our initial findings from the review show that overall the benefits of the 17 sites only slightly exceed the costs. Because the difference is small, it is possible that we will not get approval to continue looking at large scale flood storage across the Thames Valley catchment. Once this review is completed, it is likely that we will have 3 options to consider. Each of these options would need to gain partner support, funding and, further down the line, planning approvals.

Option 1: With this option, we would continue investigating all 17 locations. We would engage with landowners and communities to understand local conditions better. We could identify several locations that can work together to reduce flood risk across the Thames Valley catchment. Because the benefits are only slightly higher than the costs based on current information, progressing with this option seems unlikely.

Option 2: As we continue our investigations, we may find that only a small number of flood storage areas are possible. They would still need to be cost beneficial to gain approvals. At this stage, our studies have been based on desk assessments alone, so we would collaborate with local communities, landowners and farmers to gather more information about the area. Options 2 and 3 are equally likely to go forward at this stage.

Option 3: Our work has shown that flood storage is important to reducing the flood risk of the Thames catchment at the scale needed in the face of climate change. However, we may find that the delivery of multiple flood storage areas under one scheme will not work. We will use the work we have done though the scheme to inform other future flood risk mitigation projects and partnership working in the area. Options 2 and 3 are equally likely to go forward at this stage.

Natural Flood Management

All the options we are considering include helping to connect the natural flood management work already happening across the catchment. We are working to identify how we can best support natural flood management initiatives.

This could include:

  • Collecting and sharing data to build on existing understanding of how much natural flood management can reduce the risk of flooding to areas downstream.
  • Helping to make funding options for landowners clearer.
  • Bringing everyone together to share lessons and best practices.
  • Delivering NFM as part of our flood risk management and environment programmes, in partnership with other organisations

Timeline


This timeline shows the main project milestones. These timescales are approximate and may change as the project develops.

As with any large project, it will go through a series of approvals and will need funding from government and partners for each stage. We expect the current stage of the project, which began in 2023, to take about 2 years. After this, we would require further funding and approval for the project to progress. Beyond this, project timescales are difficult to specify as our findings will influence the direction of the project.

Planning for engagement when we are not exactly sure which direction the project will take is not easy. We are currently planning engagement in late Autumn 2024, but this date may change as we learn more. To read more about our engagement plans, please check out page 6 of our summer newsletter.


Contact us

To find out how to keep up to date with our latest news, visit our Contact Us page.

To view any of our previous newsletters, follow the links at the top of the page.


Page last updated: 22 Aug 2024, 01:52 PM