Flood Alert News and Information

Charnwood Borough Council have put together a webpage on their website to provide residents with some useful information, advice and links. www.charnwood.gov.uk/flooding

Who is responsible for what?

Charnwood Borough Council are only responsible for clearing gullies and keeping watercourses flowing on land it owns. They have a maintenance schedule to ensure that happens.

Leicestershire County Council is responsible for maintaining road gullies and brooks on its own land. Landowners also have a duty to ensure watercourses on their land are flowing freely.

The Environment Agency is responsible for the maintenance of main rivers which are usually large rivers and streams such as Sileby Brook and Wood Brook in Loughborough.

Flood alerts

If you live in a part of the borough which is prone to flooding, signing up to the Environment Agency flood alerts is free and easy. The alerts will notify you about possible flooding and you can sign up via the EA's website.

Sandbags and other flood defence products

The borough council only stocks an extremely limited number of sandbags and does not have a statutory duty to provide them.

The small number of sandbags the Council have will be issued to:

• protect life, critical infrastructure and buildings, eg hospitals and substations

• protect elderly, disabled and vulnerable residents

• support the emergency services

It's also worth noting that sandbags only provide limited protection against flooding and are most effective before flooding takes place.

Therefore, if residents know their property is prone to flooding, they may want to consider investing in other flood defence products. Blue Pages is the UK's leading independent flood directory which is run by the National Flood Forum charity.

Reporting a flood

The cause of the flood may determine which organisation you need to report it to. Leicestershire County Council is the lead local flood authority and more information about which organisations you may need to contact is available on their website

Sharing information with residents

As trusted voices in the local community, it is really important to only share information and updates from credible sources on social media to avoid spreading misinformation.