Review printed setting new course for mainstreaming property flood resilience

Strong management from authorities, housebuilders, insurers and flood motion teams shall be very important in making certain houses throughout England are higher protected against the impacts of flooding, in keeping with an unbiased evaluation printed immediately (Thursday 16 October).  

In current years, there was a rise in the usage of property flood resilience measures, which assist scale back the chance of harm to particular person properties, pace up restoration and assist individuals return house after flooding. However, uptake stays nonetheless too low.  

With the newest Environment Agency information displaying greater than 6.3 million properties in England at the moment are liable to flooding, it’s very important that extra owners discover these measures to keep away from going through increased insurance coverage premiums or lowered market worth for his or her property.  

Commissioned by the Environment Agency, Professor Peter Bonfield has printed an unbiased evaluation setting out how the nation can speed up sensible and reasonably priced flood resilience measures for houses, whereas providing a transparent roadmap for reinforcing resilience and serving to individuals get well quicker from floods. 

Property flood resilience measures – comparable to flood doorways, non-return valves and air bricks – may help to maintain as a lot water out of a property as attainable. They additionally embody measures like tiled flooring and raised electrics, so if water does enter, it minimises injury and helps individuals get again on their ft faster. The use of Sustainable Drainage Systems at property degree, for instance permeable paving and rain gardens, can even scale back the chance of floor water flooding. 

The FloodReady Review builds on progress made for the reason that 2016 PFR Review and units out a sequence of clear, sensible suggestions to extend the usage of resilience measures in houses and companies liable to flooding.  

Recommendations embody funding being focused to areas the place PFR measures provide the best profit and greatest worth for cash. It additionally calls on landlords to assist defend their tenants by embedding PFR into housing enhancements.  

It additionally advocates for higher collaboration between native authorities and water firms to align funding plans and ship resilience extra successfully. These suggestions signify a forward-looking method to tackling the rising problem of flooding in a altering local weather.   

Professor Peter Bonfield, lead for the Flood Ready Review, stated: 

Flooding presents a big and rising threat to individuals, properties and companies. I used to be happy to be invited to guide this unbiased evaluation – FloodReady – of how we will higher mainstream property flood resilience. 

FloodReady units out how we will make flood resilience a traditional a part of how houses and companies are constructed, maintained and repaired. It reveals the facility of partnership working between authorities, insurers, native authorities, and communities. 

It is absolutely heartening that the actions set out in FloodReady will now progress for supply by means of the multi-sectoral Leadership Group, Property Flood Resilience Roundtable and others to make the actions a actuality to assist defend individuals and property.

Julie Foley, Director of Flood Risk Strategy on the Environment Agency, stated: 

We have been actively working with suppliers and companions to mainstream property flood resilience as one of many methods of tackling the rising risk of flooding.  

Through our new flood funding programme, we shall be focusing on property flood resilience measures the place they’re the simplest manner of managing flood threat and provide the perfect worth for cash.  

We are additionally dedicated to making sure that the suppliers and installers we work with observe trade greatest observe in order that we will construct belief with communities and make sure that property flood resilience can play in serving to individuals get well extra rapidly after flooding.

Floods Minister Emma Hardy stated: 

As we expertise the results of local weather change it has by no means been extra vital to mainstream Property Flood Resilience measures. 

Today’s FloodReady evaluation marks a significant step change in how individuals higher defend their houses and get well quicker after flooding. 

I sit up for working throughout authorities and with companions to construct resilience and safeguard communities as we face a future of accelerating flood threat.

The Review is the results of shut collaboration between the Environment Agency, Defra, Flood Re, the insurance coverage sector, housing associations, builders, native authorities, and neighborhood teams. This joint effort goals to align flood resilience actions with the federal government’s Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy and wider local weather adaptation targets. 

The suggestions shall be taken ahead by a core management group, who will work carefully with stakeholders to prioritise and implement key actions.

ABI Director General Hannah Gurga stated:  

With local weather change rising the frequency and severity of flooding, we strongly assist the FloodReady Review’s deal with coordinated motion to guard houses and communities. The evaluation reveals the impression of the entire provide chain working collectively to enhance our resilience to flooding, and insurers are dedicated to rising the uptake of Build Back Better and Property Flood Resilience. This is a crucial alternative to ensure flood resilience is constructed into our houses, with clear requirements, accessible funding, and powerful collaboration throughout sectors.

Charles Roe, Director of Mortgages at UK Finance, stated:  

UK Finance welcomes the FloodReady Review and the suggestions it units out for tackling one of the seen climate-related challenges going through households and communities. Flood threat isn’t just an environmental concern, it has direct implications for mortgage lending, insurance coverage, and property valuation. The mortgage sector is dedicated to working with authorities, insurers, and owners to make sure funding in property flood resilience initiatives. This Review is a crucial step in direction of constructing a system the place property flood threat is healthier understood, managed, and mitigated.

Paul Shaffer, Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM) stated:

CIWEM has been working with most of the contributors to the FloodReady evaluation to construct a pathway for PFR professionals to be skilled, assessed and professionally registered with a view to high quality guarantee and reveal their competence. We consider that FloodReady’s suggestions to deal with talent growth, sector consolidation and alignment is significant to rising the resilience and confidence of communities liable to flooding. We sit up for working with authorities and different FloodReady companions to supply the mandatory consistency and confidence in PFR supply. 

Brett Amphlett, Policy & Public Affairs: The Builders Merchants’ Federation, stated: 

The distress that flooding causes is inevitably native – and subsequently the response have to be native – from flood threat managers, builders’ retailers and others. Local retailers can present what’s wanted for rapid reduction – adopted by pumps, dryers, dehumidifiers and different supplies & merchandise within the ensuing clear-up. The Builders Merchants’ Federation helps this Review and is selling it to builders’ retailers and civils & drainage specialists in our provide chain – particularly in districts vulnerable to flooding.

Alistair Smyth, Director of Policy and Research, National Housing Federation, stated:

We welcome the publication of the FloodReady motion plan. Improving the resilience of houses to flood threat and lowering the potential impression of flooding on individuals’s lives will turn into much more pressing within the years and a long time to come back. That is why the report’s suggestions on the motion wanted and the shared obligations of landlords and different events is of important significance and in time needs to be adopted proper throughout our sector.

Duncan King, Senior Technical Manager, Construction Products Association, stated:

FloodReady highlights the need for a complete trade involvement to successfully negate the distress attributable to properties being flooded. While requirements could be written protecting the manufacturing of efficient flood resilient merchandise, requirements of workmanship for these enterprise retrofitting work should be formally recognised and supported by warranties backed by the insurance coverage trade, maybe even the introduction of annual inspections of put in measures by native authorities.

Graham Watts OBE, Chief Executive, Construction Industry Council, stated:  

It has been an eye-opening pleasure to serve on Peter Bonfield’s management group for this evaluation, particularly as somebody who lives in a flood-threatened neighborhood. The suggestions within the FloodReady report are wide-ranging and vital. The board of the Construction Industry Council has already pledged assist for serving to to implement these which are directed on the development trade.