Newbury flooding: Investigation launched into West Berkshire’s ‘unexpected flood areas’

West Berkshire Council is setting up an investigation into recent flooding in the district – after it happened in unexpected areas.

It hasn’t said where those areas are – but says some properties will be given Section 19 notices, which means the council can probe into the causes of the flooding more closely.

Those details will then be published as part of the process.

But the council says it “can’t stop the water, so we’re actively encouraging people to look at whatever property protection they can put in place”.

West Berkshire Council is part of the Thames Valley Local Resilience Forum, a multi-agency partnership made up of representatives from local public services, including the emergency services, local authorities, the NHS, and others national bodies such as the Environment Agency, transport bodies and utility companies.

These agencies are known as Category 1 Responders.

The Environment Agency will also be investigating the flooded areas to figure out any pinch points in the system, which the council will then try to fix.

Stuart Gourley, West Berkshire’s executive member for climate action, recycling and biodiversity said: “We’ve been preparing for these floods for some time, prior to the arrival of Storm Henk and appreciate how distressing and unsettling this is for local people, directly affected or not.

“We are working alongside partners to warn, inform, assist, and advise our residents.

“We’ve been extremely busy over the last few days checking our drainage and flood defence infrastructure, removing debris from our roads, putting in road closures and working with our communities.

“We work closely with our flood wardens, and flood forums, who are brilliant and provide invaluable situation reports from the heart of their individual communities.

“We ask residents to be patient with us while we’re dealing with the floods.

“We do have plans for flooding events and do regular training and exercises. However, while we work with the Met Office and the Environment Agency to predict flooding and its impacts, no flood is ever the same.

“This time round we have had flooding in areas that we haven’t expected. So, we have had to be flexible and adapt to the changing situation.

“We’re in this for the long haul as it will take time for the water to subside so this will be a big challenge for us and our communities, but we’re confident that together we can bounce back and continue to build a more resilient West Berkshire.”