Local History

In July 2007 Oxfordshire was hit by incredible floods that brought chaos to the county. A year on BBC Oxford is looking back at the those water-logged summer months.

Below is all the information from The Environment Agency about the improvements they have delivered over the past 12 months.

Craig Woolhouse, Area Manager with the Environment Agency said:
“Since last summer we’ve spent £2million to complete river maintenance, de-silting work, debris clearance activities, channel maintenance and improve river structures in Oxfordshire."

One year on this is what the Environment Agency state to have achieved:

Oxford

• The Environment Agency response was immediate. Flood surgeries were held with local communities to identify problems and possible actions that could be taken. These were held in Oxford on 14 August and 3 September; in Wolvercote on 19 September; and the Vale of White Horse District Council in Abingdon (which includes Kennington) on 9 August.
• A £180,000 order for demountable flood defence barriers was placed for use on Osney Island. The 150m x 850mm and 260m x 450mm barriers will be stored locally at the Environment Agency’s Osney Depot. Fire Service and City Council personnel – as well as Environment Agency staff -- are also being trained to use them. There will be a public demonstration of the system on 4 July.
• A programme of clearance work and silt removal, costing in the region of £50,000, has been completed on the Hinksey Drain at Redbridge, following access to Network Rail land.
• Housekeeping work on Oxford’s stream system, costing more than £157,000, has been carried out by the Environment Agency’s Operations Delivery team in the past year.
• £500,000 work between January and March 2007 to replace the sluice at Towles Mill – and double the size of the side channel – was hailed by the Oxford Flood Alliance, after the July floods, for increasing the flow of water through the Redbridge pinch-points.
• A Flood Fair was held in Osney Mead in Oxford on 15 November in association with the National Flood Forum. The aim was to show people how to protect their own properties.
• Oxford City Council now has additional pumps permanently available and an emergency resource trailer ready for deployment.
  A sandbag store at the Environment Agency’s Osney Island Depot is set up and operational. There is an additional store at Bullskake Close and another is being set up at Florence Park.
• Supporting the work of providing a local flood plan for West Oxford.

Abingdon

Abingdon Flood Alleviation Scheme:

• Completed pre-feasibility study in Abingdon to assess flood risk management options including possible flood storage, flood bunds and bridge removal.
  

By Alan Miles

Maintenance work:

• Maintenance work has been carried out; clearing weeds, trimming bushes and trees and de-silting in the Boxhill Road and Tilsbury areas.
• Completed a CCTV survey of culvert in Hillview Road, Abingdon. Identified build of silt and debris and now in negotiation with Oxfordshire County Council and landowners on clearance work.
• Removed trees and silt that were reducing capacity at Drayton Road bridge in Abingdon.

Community support and advice:

• Flood surgeries were held in Abingdon in September 2007. The purpose of these surgeries was to exchange information on the causes and effects of flooding, to provide advice and get people to register for the flood warning service.
• Flood Protection Fairs were held jointly with the Local Authorities and National Flood Forum in Abingdon. Residents were able to get advice about flood protection products and we were able to encourage people to sign up to Floodline Warnings Direct, our free flood warning service.
• We regularly met and updated the new Stert Flood Action Group in Abingdon.
• We advised local communities of their responsibilities and actions that they can take. In one instance, we supported a property owner living adjacent to Dunmore School in Abingdon to liaise with Oxfordshire County council in order to repair and replace bank work.
• Following on from the July 2007 floods, when Manor Preparatory School school was flooded, it was found that a stretch of 'Non Main River' had in fact been the cause due to low banks in neighbouring residential properties. These were identified to all parties and we then prompted negotiations between the school, local property owners and Vale of White Horse District Council, which then progressed to remedial works being carried out to prevent further flooding.

Witney

• Held a public surgery on 7 August 2007, immediately following the flooding to meet residents, learn from their experiences and explain the work we do.
• Flood Fair in Witney on 16 November 2007 organised by the National Flood Forum and West Oxfordshire District Council in association with the Environment Agency.
• Encouraged people to sign up to Floodline Warnings Direct, our free flood warning service increasing the number of people receiving flood warnings in Witney to 52.
• Published “Witney Flood Review July 2007” in February 2008, which was also sent to MP David Cameron.
  Installed a new remote-monitoring camera on a key blockage point on the Hailey Road Drain. This allows us to monitor the debris screen and visit it when it begins to get blocked.
• Carried out annual clearance of the Colwell Brook, Emmas Dyke, Madley Brook, and Hailey Road Drain.
• Spend £35,000 on river maintenance in the town each year. Periodically, before heavy rainfall and during high flows the known pinch points on the rivers are checked and cleared as required. This ensures the river can flow as efficiently as possible. These inspections and clearances can happen many times in one day.
• Reacted to numerous reports from the public informing us of blockages on these rivers.
• Updated our Extreme Flood Outline map in January 2008 to include the July 2007 flood event.
• Investigated costs of dredging the channel back to its previously maintained size.
• Cleared silt and debris from under the bridge at Bridge Street on the River Windrush in collaboration with Oxfordshire County Council.
• Feasibility study into flood storage ponds for the Hailey Road Drain where 35 houses flooded in July 2007. We have the funding for this study, which we found by reprioritising some of this years work programme. The next step is to gather all the information already carried out as part of the initial study, and then decide what works will be carried out.

Standlake and Rack End, Oxfordshire - River Windrush

• Held discussions and site visit with the District Council and land owners to talk about water course maintenance and the responsibilities of Riparian owners and what work they can do with or without our consent.
• Extended the flood bund with the cooperation of the riparian owners, land owners and tenants.
• Raised sections of the right bank of the River Windrush adjacent to Rack End and lowered the left bank of the River Windrush - removing historically deposited dredged material - £50,000
• Conducted a topographical, threshold and flood level survey.

Brize Norton, Clanfield and Bampton, Oxfordshire

• Supported the completion of Bampton Community Flood Plan.
• Undertaken improved maintenance and channel clearance on the Shill Brook and Black Bourton Brook.
• Community liaison with RAF Brize Norton and local Parish Councils.
• Worked with riparian owners and Parish Councils to increase awareness of riparian rights and responsibilities on watercourses.

Letcombe Regis, Wantage, Grove and East Hanney, Oxfordshire

• Attended a number of public meetings with residents.
• Carried out maintenance and de-silting work to improve channel conveyance and clear any blockages.

East Hanney, Oxfordshire

• There are no large structured engineering options to reduce flood risk in East Hanney but local flood risk improvements can come through channel maintenance and some small-scale measures. We have been working closely with the Hanneys Flood Group, which was set up after January 2008, to advise and support them in carrying out these measures.

Steventon, Oxfordshire - Ginge Brook

• Met with local landowners and parish council to discuss maintenance issues and their riparian responsibilities.
• Survey of watercourse to understand flood risk.
• Improved channel maintenance and clearance.
• Carried out flooded property surveys, to improve the accuracy of our warning service.
• Clearance and de-silting work carried out on Ginge Brook at Steventon.

Enslow, Wendlebury, Adderbury, Bloxham and Banbury, Oxfordshire – River Cherwell

• Carried out a river channel survey to understand the flood risk.
• Carried out substantial river maintenance works to improve the conveyance of the channel and safety of culverts.
• Improved the Health and Safety of a weir structure.
• Met with local authorities and parish councils.

Flood on a bus

The Environment Agency’s three steps to take to prepare for flooding:

Visit www.environment-agency.gov.uk/floodline or call our 24 hour Floodline on 0845 988 1188 to find out if you are at risk of flooding. BT Calls cost up to 4p/minute plus 6p set-up fee from your home every time you call. Find out if flood warnings are available in your area. Make sure you understand the flood warning codes so you know what to do when a flood warning is issued. The Environment Agency provides a 24-hour flood warning service for England and Wales. Floodline Warnings Direct is a free service that gives advance warning of flooding by telephone, mobile, fax or pager. To register for the service call Floodline on 0845 988 1188, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. All that is needed to register is a telephone number where flood warnings can be sent 24 hours a day.