Key agencies across Leicestershire are teaming up and calling on communities to protect their homes from flooding, as part of a new drive.
Following successful public drop-in events after storms Henk and Babet earlier this year, a new campaign is now kicking off with two advice sessions planned this October and November. Residents and businesses will have the opportunity to ask questions and help prepare for flooding.
Experts from Leicestershire County Council, the Environment Agency, district and borough councils, water companies and other key organisations will be on hand to help.
The first drop-in event will take place on Wednesday 16 October at Harborough District Council’s offices in the Symington Building on Adam and Eve Street between 2pm-6pm and the second event at County Hall in Glenfield on Thursday 7 November, again from 2pm until 6pm.
Councillor Ozzy O’Shea, county council cabinet member for flooding, said: “We recognise that residents and businesses have been hit incredibly hard by storms and flooding in recent years, especially storm Henk in January 2024.
“Local councils and agencies work closely together to provide a united flooding support service for Leicestershire and these drop-in sessions have been put in place to provide reassurance and information for the public.
“Protecting ourselves from flooding is everyone’s responsibility and so I would encourage anyone who is concerned to come along and learn more about how to keep themselves, their businesses and their homes safe in the event of a flood.”
These sessions follow a series of recent downpours which overwhelmed drainage systems in parts of Leicestershire, flooding homes and businesses, as well as closing some roads across the county.
Councillor O’Shea added: “Our highways teams have been extremely busy over the last week and are working round-the-clock to deal with hundreds of calls about fallen trees, manhole covers popping off and flooded roads.
“We regularly clean the drains and gullies but with instances of intense rainfall becoming more common, we saw one month’s rainfall in just a few hours last weekend.”
“We’re looking at areas that experienced significant surface water to check gullies are working to their max capacity and also if there are implications for other flood risk management organisations.”
Anyone with questions ahead of the drop-in events may contact the flood team by emailing: flooding@leics.gov.uk
Later this autumn and winter, residents can expect updates to the county council’s website with more flooding information and advice, informational videos from key experts and an up to date social media campaign.
Get prepared for flooding by:
- Checking your home insurance policy for flood cover
- Signing up for flood warnings
- Making a flood plan
- Checking your flood risk
- Preparing your home
Follow Leicestershire County Council on social media for live updates and warnings on flooding and weather throughout the year.