Expert Evidence to Flooding Select Committee

Notts County Council appointed a select Committee on Flooding last September.  What a pity they didn’t tell anyone about it!  Surfing the Notts CC website we found that they had taken evidence from various departments and agencies but had not thought to take evidence from the real experts – people who had experienced at first hand flooding in their homes and who have studied local flooding issues.

So the indomitable Roger Fell catapulted into action and, drawing on experience in the Gunthorpe and Burton Joyce areas in the 2000 floods and his experience of studying flooding in the area since that time, (and with the support of funding from BJRA, BJ Parish Council and others), researched and prepared a submission on the local experience of flooding.  His excellent presentation looked at policy and practice, different sources of flooding, the victim’s experience of flooding, the response of emergency agencies and the way in which planning permissions for built development and sand and gravel extraction in inappropriate places increases flooding risks.

We look forward to seeing the Select Committee’s final report to the Council, and what recommendations it makes to improve policy and practice.