Land Drainage & Flooding

Protecting Your Property Against Flooding

Buying products

 Keep flood water out of your home. Find out about Kitemark certified products that you can install to make your property flood resistant.

When you buy a flood product check it  has been tested  to industry standards and it is up to the job - it should display the Kitemark symbol or equivalent accreditation if it has been tested properly.

An independent directory of flood product manufacturers is on the bluepages.org.uk  website.  This directory is put together by the National Flood Forum.

We strongly recommended that you seek professional advice from a building surveyor, architect or other independent professional if you are considering flood protection solutions for your property.

Information warning

There is no guarantee that any flood protection system will work and Charnwood Borough Council do not endorse a particular product or supplier.

It is the responsibility of the purchaser to ensure the products are appropriate for their property, fit for purpose, correctly fitted and meet their specific needs.  It's important to be aware that using flood products may make flood water outside the protected area more dangerous by making it flow faster.  If flood water overwhelms a barrier, it may have a more catastrophic effect  than if the area had flooded gradually.

Also, be careful to consider all the ways water can enter your property.  For example, in addition to flood boards across your doorways you may also need to install airbrick covers and non-return valves on your drainage system.

If you want to find out if you live in an area at risk of flooding use the search facility provided by the Environment Agency

Catchment Management

The Council's main responsibility is to limit and control damage from flooding of ordinary watercourses (not Main River i.e. River Soar), by making sure the districts land drainage systems perform satisfactorily.

Overall management of our 'river catchments' is split between:

• 'Main River channels' - The Environment Agency are responsible for managing the primary river channels designated by DEFRA (Department of Environment, Food & Rural Affairs) as 'Main River'
• All other watercourses - Environmental Services within Leisure and Environmental Services at Charnwood Borough Council manage all other ordinary watercourses including ditches and drainage channels
• Foul and surface water sewer networks - Severn Trent Water Limited are responsible for all public sewers in this area and property owners can be responsible for other drainage

For more information on Watercourse Management click here.

We can also provide advice on:

• The Land Drainage Byelaws
• Watercourse Management
• Advice to the public and businesses in the event of flooding

The Environment Agency have also published a guide to Riparian Ownership called Living on the Edge

Policy Statement on Flood Defence

The Council has agreed with the Environment Agency that there are 25 km of critical ordinary watercourses within the Borough, i.e. watercourses which are not classified as main river, but which both parties have agreed to be critical because they have the potential to put at risk from flooding large numbers of people and property

A Policy Statement has been prepared by Charnwood Borough Council to provide a public statement of the Council's approach to flood defence in its area.

• Flood Defence Policy Statement (PDF Document, 0.2 Mb)

Statutory (Legal) Control

The Council as an Operating Authority has powers, which it exercises, under the Land Drainage Act 1991 to mitigate the effect of flood flows on ordinary watercourses by undertaking maintenance and improvement works, but generally it is not responsible for the maintenance of banks.

The Council has also introduced Land Drainage Byelaws, which pertain to all ordinary watercourses in the Council's operating area for the purpose of preventing flooding, remedying or mitigating any damage caused by flooding.

 If you need to contact us regarding general advice on Land Drainage or Flooding Tel: 01509 634563 , E-mail or Report a Problem