Flood management

Herefordshire Council is a Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA) and it has the 'lead' role in managing flood risk from surface water, groundwater and ordinary watercourses across the county. We work with the emergency services, Environment Agency, Met Office, and the utility companies to tackle flooding within the county.

Together with other partner authorities and key stakeholders in Herefordshire we have produced a Local flood risk management strategy and an accompanying Action plan.

We also have a duty to investigate incidents of flooding. You can view our 2019/20 reports and location summaries.

We work closely with organisations like the Environment Agency to help prevent flooding. Our assessment of potential risks in the county means we know which areas are mostly likely to flood. However, as flooding can happen anywhere, not just near rivers or streams, we have to be ready with contingency plans so we can react quickly should the worst happen. That means we can make faster decisions about which roads should be closed, for instance. We can also ensure that people have up-to-date information and the practical help that they need.

Flood management schemes

We are involved in a number of flood management schemes across the county, to mitigate future flooding.

Landowner responsibilities

If you own land next to a river, read the Guidance on owning a watercourse on GOV.UK that outlines your rights and responsibilities. For more advice on ditch and drainage management please see our Ditch and drainage responsibilities page.

Herefordshire Rural Hub's Watercourse management guide also provides useful information on the requirements for managing our rivers, streams and ditches.

Land drainage

We can use our permissive powers to deal with identified problems, generally in relation to failure by owners to carry out works or maintenance on ordinary watercourses (not main rivers) in order to maintain water flow and minimise the risk of flooding.

Land and property owners are responsible for their own property and have a responsibility for maintaining water flows, not only to protect themselves, but also their neighbours. If they fail to carry out their responsibilities, Herefordshire Council or the Environment Agency have powers to take action to alleviate particular problems under the Land Drainage Act 1991.

Emergency planning

We also have plans in place in the event of a reservoir failure and flooding at tourism sites, such as caravan and camping sites.

If you would like to know more about how we manage flooding in Herefordshire, call our Emergency Planning team on 01432 260000 or email resilienceteam@herefordshire.gov.uk