FLOOD

PROTECTION

PILOT PROJECT

Wyke Beck

has flooded approx 70 houses on the

Dunhill Estate on three recent occasions

12 Aug 2004

3 May 2005

25 June 2007

Leeds City Council agrees to give up to £150,000 to pilot scheme

to protect the houses at greatest risk in the Dunhills

EA Flood Alleviation Scheme –modelling completed –options being

developed –still needs compete for funding, against national priorities

DEFRA agrees to give £90,000 as part of a national pilot scheme

Yorkshire Regional Flood Defence Committee gives £10,000 from its

Local Levy fund

Project Advisory Board established

•Leeds L

and D

rain

age

•E

nvironm

ent

Agency

•R

egio

nal F

loo

d D

efe

nce C

om

mitte

e

•D

EF

RA

•R

esid

ents

’F

lood A

ction G

rou

p

•Local C

ouncill

ors

•A

rea M

anag

em

ent

Single tender sought –4 tenderers (pros and cons)

•Is

sues:

speed,

qualit

y,

help

with p

rocure

men

t

•A

ppra

ise

d o

n P

rice a

nd

Qua

lity (

by s

ub-c

om

mitte

e o

f board

)

Drop in session

•P

roduct

dis

pla

ys

•N

ationa

l F

lood

Foru

m

•Leeds C

om

mu

nity F

ou

ndatio

n (

recovery

gra

nt

dis

trib

utio

n)

Flood warning scheme developed

•M

andato

ry s

ign-u

p

•F

lood w

ard

en

s

Flood preparation (or deployment) plan

ESSENTIAL

•BS

I K

item

ark

pro

ducts

for

doo

r /

win

do

w o

pe

nin

gs

•BS

I K

item

ark

or

equiv

ale

nt

for

air-b

rick c

overs

•12 h

ours

co

ntinuous d

ura

tio

n

•Tried a

nd t

este

d m

eth

odo

log

y

•12 m

onth

defe

cts

period

DESIRABLE REQUIREMENTS

•Speed a

nd e

ase o

f in

sta

llation

by O

ccupie

r

•Easy t

o s

tore

•Choic

e o

f colo

ur

/ sty

les

•Tra

nsfe

rable

guara

nte

e

•Easy t

o r

em

ove f

ixin

g b

rackets

with m

in.

perm

. im

pact

•Repla

cem

ents

readily

availa

ble

•Min

ima

l m

ain

tenance r

equir

em

ents

•Min

ima

l dis

turb

ance t

o o

ccup

iers

durin

g insta

llation

•Im

pact

on f

utu

re insura

nce p

rem

ium

s o

r in

su

rabili

ty

•Dura

bili

ty a

nd r

obustn

ess o

f p

roducts

Flo

od b

oard

s f

or

doors

–in

clu

din

g p

atio d

oors

Air b

rick c

overs

•W

innin

g t

en

de

r (just)

was

Flo

odg

uard

s

•C

om

mitm

ent

form

sig

ne

d b

y

resid

ents

•G

uard

s o

wne

d b

y L

eeds C

C

(issues?)

Vuln

era

bili

ty c

he

cked b

y m

eans o

f:-

•Q

uestionnaires (

LC

C)

•H

yd

raulic

modelli

ng (

EA

)

•T

hre

shold

surv

ey (

EA

)

EA threshold survey, 2007

OBSTRUCTIONS

OTHER ISSUES

Structural Stability (conflicting advice)

•B

rick w

alls

(90

0m

m ?

600m

m ?

)

•uP

VC

Conserv

ato

ry w

alls

Gas Ventilation

•no a

dvic

e a

vaila

ble

Storage Problems

•S

hare

d b

ins/s

heds?

DEPLOYMENT PLAN

Public

Me

eting

21 A

pril 20

08

SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

21 January 2008

flood e

vent

25 January 2008

Pitt

Enquir

y T

eam

vis

it

18 February 2008

insta

llation

com

ple

ted

21 April 2008

public

meetin

g o

n D

ep

loym

ent

Pla

n

20 June 2008

vis

it b

y H

ilary

Benn,

Secre

tary

of

Sta

te

20 August 2008

flood e

ve

nt

(wa

rnin

gs g

iven

, board

s

ere

cte

d,

goo

d c

olla

bora

tion b

y n

eig

hbours

, re

duce

d

sandb

ags)

EA

Schem

e s

till

under

develo

pm

ent

RECOMMENDATIONS FROM REPORT

RECOMMENDATION 1:That pro-active steps be taken by local authorities and national agenciesto

disseminate adviceabout available flood protection measures that can be adopted on an individual house

basis. Engagement with residents needs to be imaginative and two-way: not everyone will respond to simple

adverts and letters (e.g. only a minority attended our Deployment Plan launch meeting, despite ample

notification).

RECOMMENDATION 2:That uniform national advice be given concerning the height of flood protectionthat

may be safely installed without the need for a specific structural risk assessment.

RECOMMENDATION 3:That national guidance be issued to assist structural engineers in making appropriate

assumptionswhen carrying out specific structural risk assessments.

RECOMMENDATION 4:That suppliers and manufacturers of prefabricated conservatories issue guidance on

the maximum safe external hydraulic loadingthat can be sustained by their product, provided it has been

properly erected.

RECOMMENDATION 5:That national advice be issued on the gas safety implicationsof airbrick covers,

including instructions on the appropriate precautions to be taken in this respect when using such covers.

Suppliers and installers of covers should replicate this advice in their own literature for customers.

Consideration could be given to having a ‘snorkel’type of air vent on safety-critical airbrick covers.

RECOMMENDATION 6:That Floodguards Systems Limited consider supplying a lightweight flexible cover

that can prevent driving rain from enteringthe space between the Floodguard and the door. It is likely that

some of the other available flood boards will have the same problem.

RECOMMENDATION 7:That the Environment Agency, in collaboration with Leeds City Council, continue to

appraise the effectiveness of the flood warning schemein relation to facilitating the deployment of the flood

boards and airbrick covers.