In late June, 11 members of the Environment Agency, including senior directors and managers, mainly from London visited Shipston-on-Stour and toured the extensive River Stour catchment where flood intervention measures have been installed during 2017 – 2018.

They were invited by members of the Shipston Area Flood Action Group (SAFAG) to view some of the 175 flood intervention measures which have been installed on the Knee Brook (the main watercourse in the area) and its tributaries.

The Environment Agency has been very supportive of SAFAG over the last few years as they view the Group as leaders and national pathfinders in community led natural flood management (NFM) projects across the UK.

The 175 NFM interventions, such as woody dams, ponds and bunds etc, are designed to ‘slow the flow’ of the watercourses typically on farmland in the upper reaches during spate conditions.  It is intended that this holding back and slowing of the flood waters will reduce the risk of flooding to homes and businesses in Shipston and numerous other villages in the local area.

Over a working lunch, SAFAG members delivered a video presentation of the 2007 floods which emphasised the extent of the flooding problem in the area.  Also during the visit the EA members were given the opportunity to assist in building 2 woody dams to better understand the challenges and issues involved.

The visit was a great success and assisted in enhancing partnership working with the Environment Agency as SAFAG bid for future funding.  Any further grants obtained will be used to install several hundred more NFM interventions on the other 2 watercourses in the Stour catchment, thereby reducing the risk of flooding to properties even further.