Agenda item

Report of Cabinet Member for Environment, Infrastructure and Climate Change

The meeting will be addressed by a representative of Eccleshall Flood Action Group (copy correspondence attached) 

The Committee considered a report of the Cabinet Member for Environment Infrastructure and Climate Change informing them of the proposed process and timescales for refreshing the Authority’s Flood Risk Management (FRM) Strategy together with the County Council’s FRM Team’s workplan priorities for 2021/22 (schedule 1 to the signed minutes).

The County Council were designated Lead Local Flood Authority for Staffordshire under the Flood and Water Management Act 2010. As such the Authority had various responsibilities associated with floods and water including the development of a Local Flood Risk Management Strategy and monitoring progress and activity by all parties involved in flood risk management. Their current FRM Strategy had been prepared in December 2015 and was due to be updated in 2020. However, following a delay in publication of the Government’s National Strategy this had been postponed until 2022.

However, Members noted that work had already commenced on the Strategy refresh and it was expected that external consultants would be appointed in early 2022 to assist in this process. In addition, key Stakeholder involvement was planned for Spring 2022 with a draft revised Strategy being submitted to Cabinet for approval during Autumn 2022 with final publication expected in Winter 2022.

Members heard that the FRM Team worked to fulfil the County Council’s statutory duty under the Act by investigating incidences of flooding where either:- (i) five or more residential properties in one location had flooded; (ii) two or more commercial properties in one location had flooded or; (iii) one or more critical infrastructure in one location had flooded. Accordingly following floods which had met the above-mentioned criteria, 15 reports were due to be published before the end of 2021/22.

Since Autumn 2019 the Team’s’ priorities had changed in response to:- (i) an increased demand for flood investigations; (ii) the Covid-19 pandemic and; (iii) to take account of the various lessons learned over the previous flooding period. Their focus was now entirely on ensuring the Authority’s statutory duties were being met and Members also noted the specific priorities set out in Appendix 1 to the report.   

In response to a letter dated 18 May 2021 from Mr. S. Perren, Chairman of the Eccleshall Flood Action Group (EFAG) to the County Councillor for Stone Rural County Electoral Division (the previous Chairman of the Committee) regarding flooding in Eccleshall and suggested remedial actions (attached at Appendix 1 to the signed minutes), the Committee were addressed and given a PowerPoint presentation by Mrs. S. Bramall of EFAG (slides attached at Appendix 2 to the signed minutes) highlighting the Group’s concerns. The Committee were interested to learn something of the detrimental impact flooding had on local communities in Staffordshire as a whole so that they could better hold the Cabinet Member to account and ensure that the County Council’s duties and responsibilities were being met.

During the full and wide ranging discussion which ensued, Members gave detailed scrutiny to the Strategy and Team’s priorities etc, asking questions and seeking clarification on various matters, where necessary, including:- (i) the responsibilities of adjacent land-owners in maintaining drainage on their property and the enforcement powers of the County Council; (ii) the importance of effective partnership working with Stakeholders such as the Environment Agency and Water Companies; (iii) the need for effective communication between the County Council and local communities impacted by flooding; (iv) the efforts being made to improve data collection and sharing by the County Council with stakeholders; (v) the role of early warning systems in helping to mitigate damage to property; (vi) progress by the County Council in implementing their Highways gully emptying programme and measures to improve its effectiveness in the future and; (vii) the use of ‘greywater’ systems in helping to reduce incidence of flooding.

The Chairman then thanked Mrs. Bramall for her interesting and informative presentation which had helped the Committee understand the various issues involved.

RESOLVED – (a) That the report be received and noted.

(b) That the concerns of Eccleshall Flood Action Group regarding flooding in Staffordshire, be noted.

(c) That the County Council’s Flood Risk Management Team’s priorities for 2021/22 be supported.

(e) That the proposed process and timescales for the Flood Risk Management Strategy refresh be supported.

(f) That progress against the County Council’s proposed Outcome Measures for the 2021/27 Flood Risk Management Strategy be brought to the Committee for scrutiny in six-months’ time.