Flood management projects
View the different types of flood management projects below, including links to specific pages for our larger projects.
Large ongoing projects
Our larger projects are called 'major capital flood management projects'. These types of projects usually:
- are large or complex
- need significant investment
- are planned to reduce flood risk to multiple properties
- are planned to use various engineering solutions
These projects usually offer greater benefits to more people. But they need a lot of time and resources to be deployed.
View more about these projects on our project pages:
Projects to protect buildings
We can protect buildings at a smaller scale using 'Property Flood Resilience' (PFR) measures.
These projects help property owners and businesses to reduce the amount of water entering buildings and causing damage (including damage to possessions).
View more about these projects on our project pages:
View how you can protect your property or business from flooding.
Projects using natural processes
We use natural materials and systems to our advantage in 'Nature Based Solutions' (NBS) projects.
Read more about the processes we use and benefits of NBS in the drop down sections below.
NFM involves implementing measures to protect, restore or mimic the natural processes of rivers, floodplains and the wider catchment, to:
- store water in the landscape
- slow down the rate of water running off the landscape and into rivers
We work on NFM projects with landowners and other stakeholders. We do this with them alongside other flood risk management processes.
These aim to reduce the impact that new development works have on flood risk. They replicate the natural processes where rainwater is captured, stored and transported.
SuDS can also be retrofitted to existing developments and infrastructure.
Using NBS has more benefits in addition to reducing the risk of flooding. It can improve the health of habitats and increase the connectivity between habitat patches, which also improves:
- areas where wildlife forages for food
- areas of shelter for wildlife
It improves the carbon capture and storage opportunities across the landscape by trapping and retaining organic materials where they naturally accumulate. This could include:
- fine-sediments like silt or sand being trapped by leaky dams
- wetland and peaty habitats absorbing carbon dioxide and storing carbon
Other benefits include:
- supporting good water quality and water resource management
- improving resilience to changes in climate
- supporting the improvement and restoration of natural processes including:
- ecological processes
- hydrological processes
- hydromorphological processes
- improving public access to nature
- supporting the physical and mental wellbeing of residents
- supporting the objectives of the Local Nature Recovery Strategy for Buckingham and Milton Keynes
Our NBS projects
We work with communities where there is a medium or high risk of flooding.
View more about our NBS projects on the project pages:
How we fund flood management projects
The government encourages communities to invest in flood management measures which will protect them, and funding is available for local flood management projects.
Central funding for a scheme will relate directly to:
- the number of households protected
- the damages being prevented
- other benefits such as creation of habitat
If a scheme does not receive full funding
If a proposed scheme does not qualify for full central funding, contributions from local partners are required to meet the full costs. This gives each community more of a say in which schemes are taken forward to protect them.
This means local contributions may be required for a scheme to progress, unless the costs of the scheme can be decreased.
If required, local contributions would be sought from those who are likely to benefit from the proposed scheme.
The local levy
We are represented on the Anglian (Central) and Thames Regional Flood and Coastal Committees.
Funding is raised by the RFCCs by way of a levy on the Lead Local Flood Authorities in their areas, and payments are supported by grants from central government.
The amount each LLFA has to contribute is based on the number of band D properties in each LLFA area. The RFCCs are responsible for making decisions on how the levy is spent.
The local levy can be used to support locally-important flood risk management projects that are not considered to be national priorities and do not attract full central government funding.
Contact us
If you have any questions, email us (and include the project name): [email protected]