Hampshire Flood Plan Consultation

5 November 2012, 06:00

People in Hampshire are being asked to give their experiences about flooding to help the council set up a strategy to prevent it happening.

Last week the Met Office warned of an increased risk of flooding in the the county this winter because the ground is saturated from one of the wettest summers on record.

A new act by the Government means Hampshire County Council is a Lead Local Flood Authority and has to manage risks related to groundwater and surface water while the Environment Agency is responsible for coastal and main river flooding. 

People are being asked to give their experiences about flooding and to check the council has the correct records about how often it's happened in the past.

The consultation closes at noon on Monday, November 5 and can be found here.

Paul Mustow, head of flood incident management at the Environment Agency, said: "This year our flood defences have protected over 119,000 properties, but we cannot prevent flooding entirely. 

"With one in six homes at risk of flooding, the most important step people can take in protecting themselves from the worst impacts is to find out if they are at risk, and sign up to the Environment Agency's free flood warnings service."

Households and businesses can check their flood risk and sign up to receive free flood warnings at www.environment-agency.gov.uk/flood.