I recently met with the Neil Longden, the Environment Agency’s Area Director to discuss the actions taken so far following last year’s floods, and the plans for the future.

Following the site meeting I arranged on Sherwood Street in February, with the Environment Agency and residents of the local area, the EA have confirmed that the following actions have been undertaken:

1. Maintenance of the French drain at the back of the defence wall
The Environment Agency tells me it has continued its regular inspection and maintenance programme of flood defences in this area, including the flood wall at Sherwood Street. This included maintenance of flap valves along the wall, that are connected to the French drain. Further works are planned in Autumn to improve access for maintenance.

2. Repair of  the defences at Riverside view to prevent future outflanking
The Environment Agency identified an improvement that could be made to the floodwall at River View and are undertaking a project to extend this flood wall to reduce flood risk to River View, Bridge Street, Hawthorne and Sherwood Street. The Environment Agency are securing the required permissions. It is likely a temporary defence will be installed ahead of winter, due to timing and the conditions, and then the permanent construction after winter. If it is possible to achieve delivery of a permanent solution before winter the Environment Agency will do so.

3. Survey and necessary repairs to the embankment
The Environment Agency have surveyed the embankment, which they say has raised no concerns or repairs to be undertaken. The EA will continue to inspect and maintain this asset as appropriate.

4. Work with the community to form a flood group
A meeting was held on the 11 July 2024 to discuss community flood resilience with residents of Sherwood, Hawthorne, Bridge Street and Derby Road. The Environment Agency facilitated this meeting alongside Derbyshire County Council and Chesterfield Borough Council. They tell me that there were some good discussions about resilience but the community did not express intentions to develop a formal community flood group at this time. If this is something people would be interested in, then please get in touch with my office. You can also request further information by emailing YorkshireFloodResilience@environment-agency.gov.uk

5. Consideration of an exceedance plan
In October the Environment Agency is carrying out an internal assessment of what additional actions can be carried out to reduce risk or aid recovery, should river levels exceed the design of the assets in this location and across Chesterfield. I will endeavour to keep you informed about this.

6. Flood alleviation scheme for the River Hipper
We also discussed the flood alleviation scheme for the River Hipper. The Environment Agency are in the process of developing a business case for a flood alleviation scheme, based upstream at Holymoorside, but the project currently has a significant funding gap. Funding will need to be identified for the project to be delivered. I am pursuing this scheme as it is really important. The EA are also investigating the removal of a disused bridge over the River Hipper at Clayton Street to reduce obstructions to flow during flood event

We also discussed again the situation at Tapton Terrace. Unfortunately, the position remains the same that there is limited actions that can be taken to protect the properties there. We again discussed the possibility compulsory purchase of these properties, but this is not something that the EA can pay for alone. I did not receive a reply from the previous Government regarding a CPO, but I have now written to the new Floods Minister, Emma Hardy MP, to request she looks into this afresh and liaises with the EA.

Subject to funding, they will undertake an optimisation study to assess whether there are any operational improvements that can be undertaken to further reduce flood risk. This could include changes to other bridges and, with other partners, investigating any potential for further storage on tributaries of the Rivers Rother and Hipper, for example Spital Brook and Holme Brook. They will also look to develop natural flood management opportunities within the Rother and Hipper Catchments to help slow the flow and reduce risk to downstream communities.

I have also been in touch with Derbyshire County Council, the lead flood authority, regarding the publication of the S19 flood investigation report. I was originally told this report would be available in early summer, and so it is very disappointing that we are still waiting. This report will now be discussed by Derbyshire County Councillors on Wednesday 18^th September and will then be going out to public consultation.

DCC tell me that the report, “ has been reviewed in draft by local organisations such as borough and district councils, as well as the environment agency. However, it now needs to go through a public consultation period, which the legal team have advised needs to be formally authorised by Cabinet. It will therefore be considered whether to launch the consultation on the draft report at the September Cabinet meeting, and will go to public consultation shortly after that if Cabinet are in agreement.”

I would encourage as many of you as possible to feed in to this public consultation and ensure your views and experiences are heard.

I will keep you updated on any further developments. I will also be seeking further meetings with the Environment Agency and Floods Minister once the S19 report is finalised.