Witnesses:
Tom Pooley, Flood Risk and
Network Resilience Specialist
Tor Peebles, Flood Risk
Management Strategy and Partnerships Team Leader
James Painter, Community
Partnerships Manager
Tabitha Whitcombe, Community
Flood Resilience Project Officer, National Flood Forum
John Furey, Cabinet
Member for Highways, Flooding and Transport
Declarations of interest:
None
Key
points raised in the discussion:
- Officers
introduced the report by way of a presentation (attached as Annex
B) and informed the Board that under the Flood and Water Management
Act 2010 the Council had a duty, in its capacity as the lead local
flood authority, to maintain, monitor and develop and apply a Local
Flood Risk Management Strategy (LFRMS).
- It was
noted that the strategy as a whole was previously reviewed by the
Economic Prosperity, Environment and Highways Board on October
2016. However today the focus was on Objective 5 of the Strategy on
Community Resilience.
- Objective 5
of the Local Flood Risk Management Strategy (LFRMS) states that the
residents of Surrey would be supported to improve community
resilience. Local people would be empowered to reduce the risk of
flooding on both an individual and community level.
- It was
noted that the Council was responsible for managing flood risk from
ordinary watercourses; watercourses that do not form part of a main
river. In addition, the Council’s duties include managing
flood risk from groundwater and surface water, and highway drainage
excluding those maintained by Highways England. However, it was
noted that the council did not have a statutory duty to maintain
these and funding in this area had reduced significantly to
proactively sustain them.
- It was
explained that flood alleviation schemes were also a priority for
the Council and were mainly funded with flood defence grants and
aid funding by Central Government.
6.
The service highlighted that the authorities
responsible for the work within the County included District and
Borough Councils, the Environment Agency and water
companies.
7.
The Board were informed that Objective 5 of the
LFRMS was created to develop the relationship between the Risk
Management Authorities and communities affected by flooding in
order to establish successful engagement with a partnership
approach.
- Officers
provided a definition for the term resilient community which was
described by the Cabinet Office lead for community resilience, Max
Brody as one where communities, businesses and individuals are
empowered to harness local resources and expertise. This enables
them to help themselves and their communities to prepare, respond
and recover from disruptive challenges and to adapt to long term
environmental changes.
- It was
explained that Surrey Prepared was a Surrey wide multi-agency
partnership formed in response to winter floods in 2013/14, whose
approach was community led and offered information, training and
funding, with an aim for effective support to communities within Surrey
to become more resilient through a coordinated multi-agency
approach. This would involve sharing best practice, promoting joint
working, developing key information and establishing mutual support
networks for resilient communities.
- It was
reported that Surrey Prepared was made up of a wide membership
including the Emergency Services, voluntary organisations, utility
companies, the military and district and borough councils. Officers
advised that information on funding was available through the
Surrey Prepared webpage which was supported by utility companies
and charities.
- Power
outages and severe winter weather were also identified as part of
community resilience and officers explained that flooding was not
the only element that was targeted for support by Surrey
Prepared.
- The Officer
highlighted that there was a video of Magna Carta School, showing
how children who had been impacted by the flooding events in
2013/14 and can make a difference in disaster planning and
recovery.
- Officers
highlighted that the Surrey Prepared webpages were put together to
ensure information was promoted and made accessible to residents.
The content aimed to share information on the role of the emergency
services, offers training and resources and allows residents to
sign up to a priorities register. Officers highlighted that a
Twitter account, @SurreyPrepared, was also set up, linked to the
Surrey Prepared webpage to endorse the information.
- The
Community Partnerships Manager shared the Community Emergency Plan
with the Board and Members of the Public, advising that key
contacts were listed within it to ensure good coordination between
the services, authorities and residents.
- It was
noted Surrey Prepared had: made available online and paper
resources for residents; had conducted an online Community Capacity
Survey, and accumulated over 350 Twitter followers.
- Officers
informed the Board of some of the positive events that had been
organised, reporting that a resilience roadshow took place in
Farnham on 19 January, where residents where given the opportunity
to talk to a variety of agencies on topics relating to flooding and
winter risks.
- Furthermore
a Riparian Landowners Evening took place in Cranleigh, for people
who own property next to a river, stream or ditch, where they were
offered guidance on how to reduce the risk of flooding to their
homes, and given advice on their responsibilities as landowners.
This event was attended by representatives of the County Council,
Thames Water and the Environment Agency.
- The
Community Flood Resilience Project Officer introduced the work of
the National Flood Forum (NFF), a specialist independent charity
that supports and represented communities and individuals that have
been affected or were at risk from flooding.
- Members
were informed that the NFF did not receive any core funding from
the Government and their main objective was to put communities and
individuals at the centre of policy making and operational delivery
on the ground
- Members
were advised that there were several ways they could support
community resilience, signposting, encouraging and promoting flood
action groups.
- The
Chairman informed the Board that a question had been submitted by a
resident from the Jacobs Well Resident Association, and that a
submission had been received from the Tilthams/Furze Lane Flood
Forum. The Chairman then requested that written responses were
prepared and provided to the issues raised after the
meeting.
- Members
raised concerns regarding the lack of advance warnings,
communication and flood wardens around the time of the floods in
2013/14. Officers explained that, at that time there key
information was not being shared sufficiently between agencies and
emergency services; however, since the previous flooding events, a
shared database between the emergency services had been
created.
- Members
noted that officers engaged with local committees regularly,
seeking local perspective and current priorities. Officers also
advised that a campaign on riparian awareness was in effect and
discussions at local level where being delivered.
- Officers
were pleased to receive assurances from the Armed Forces Champion
in working together going forward to promote links with the
military in Surrey.
- Officers
acknowledged that planning was a big concern for residents. It was
explained that the SCC as Lead Local Flood Authority review
drainage proposals for major developments and can recommend refusal
for insufficient surface water drainage capacity in planning
applications. It was further explained that the Council’s
position in this area was as a statutory consultee and therefore it
does not have powers to enforce and the advice is used at the
discretion of the planning authority
- It was
noted that planning officers attend Flood Action Group meetings and
these were a platform for residents to raise direct and technical
concerns. Officers informed the Board that a recent meeting in
Tilthams Green resulted with the developer taking note and changing
the design of the proposed drainage system.
- The
Chairman invited members of the public in attendance to raise any
questions regarding community resilience with Members and Witnesses
in attendance.
- A member of
public expressed that there was a lack of education and
communication with residents in understanding the risks of
flooding, and the steps homeowners could take to alleviate those
risks. They also expressed the view that Surrey Prepared required
better branding as there was no Surrey County Council logo.
Officers explained that there was no corporate branding on the
Surrey prepared webpage as it was a shared platform, supported by
multiple agencies.
- There was a
discussion around engagement with utility companies and residents
especially during floods. Officers informed the Board that Thames
Water were actively seeking to improve their customer service and
the effect had been noted in a number of areas.
- Officers
were questioned on the systems that were in place to ensure
continuity for residents in Surrey. Officers assured that the
delivery of the strategy would ensure continuity through the
enduring objectives, which was also reliant on resilient groups and
commitment from the authorities.
- Members of
the public suggested that it would be useful to have an
organisational chart of key contacts in the event of an emergency
during floods. Officers noted this suggestion and advised a list
would be made available as part of Objective 3, which was projected
to be drawn up by August 2017.
- The Cabinet
Member for Highways, Flooding and Transport expressed the view
community resilience was community led, community driven and
community sustained but supported by the Council and its
partners.
Recommendations:
•
The Board supports Community Resilience, the Surrey
Flood Risk Management Strategy and notes the work of the Strategic
Network Resilience Team.
•
The Board suggests clarity of the partnership
organisations involved in the Surrey Prepared programme, and that
this is reflected on public literature.
•
The Board suggests that as county-wide Community
Resilience develops, that a database of contacts and organisations
is available to Flood Forums, Flood Action Groups, Members and
active individuals in times of flooding.
Actions:
- To
circulate video link of Magna Carta School, resilience in action,
to Members.
- For written
responses to be prepared and
provided to Jacobs Well Resident Association
and Tilthams/Furze Lane Flood Forum.