After the summer floods of 2007, the UK government instructed Sir Michael Pitt to undertake a review of the lessons to be learned from the floods. The report put forward a number of recommendations, including the need for local councils to be given powers and responsibilities to protect communities through robust building and planning control.
The implementation of the Flood and Water Management Act was one of a number of actions taken by parliament as a result of the Pitt Review. On the back of the Pitt Review, the Flood and Water Management Act gained assent in 2010. The Act aims to reduce the flood risk associated with severe weather, intensified by climate change. It created the role of Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA), which is the local government authority responsible for managing flood risk in the local government area.
The Act gave new powers to local authorities, the Environment Agency, Welsh Ministers and water companies. The Act relates almost entirely to England and Wales. Schedule 3 of the Act which seeks to create a SuDS Approving Body (SAB) has been implemented in Wales, but not in England. Under Schedule 3 of the Act, construction work, which has drainage implications, may not be commenced unless a drainage system for the work has been approved by the SAB. In Wales, the SAB lies with the LLFA this applies to all construction projects with a total area exceeding 100m2, or of more than 1 dwelling, unless they can be proven not to have drainage implications.
It is the recommendation within the January 2023 Implementation review from Defra that the respective LLFA within England become the SAB and that the same development criteria outlined previously for Wales is applied for England. The Implementation Review assesses which body has responsibility for being a SAB and assesses the pros and cons of each. It also looks at costs; for setting up the SAB, running costs and operation & maintenance costs.
The review evaluates necessary skills and capabilities; the need for national standards; and adoption. It is the intention to implement Schedule 3 in late 2024. Currently DEFRA have engaged with WSP, CIRIA and others to undertake a number of focus groups, surveys and questionnaires which will feed back to DEFRA seeking to address a number of issues.
This presentation will give an overview on the above and will look at the opportunities and challenges it presents to the local region.
