We’re proud to partner with Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust
Our commitment to building climate resilient communities
We're excited to announce our new 2-year partnership with Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust (GWT). The partnership will help to provide Natural Flood Management (NFM) solutions to this flood-prone area of the UK.
Why are we tackling this issue?
Flooding is one of the greatest challenges facing homes across the UK. In England alone, one in six properties are at risk of flooding.
MORE THAN analysis shows that the average number of claims received for weather-related incidents has risen by 58% over the last 3 years. The average flood claim was around £39,000.
Flooding can cause significant damage, causing both financial and emotional stress for homes up and down the country. However, by working together with different organisations, we can use the power of nature to increase flood resilience.
What does our new partnership involve?
We're partnering with Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust on an extensive Natural Flood Management programme. The aim is to help reduce flood risk across Cheltenham and Gloucester. Our data identifies these areas as having a high flood risk. More than 23,500 homes could be prone to flooding each year.
Our new partnership will see £400,000 invested in nature-based interventions. This will help limit the impact of flooding, improve the resilience of local communities and help protect local habitats.
We’ll also fund actions which help collect and slow surface water run-off to reduce flood risk. Plus, we'll engage with local communities to raise knowledge and awareness.
We’re excited to be partnering with GWT. They're experts in using nature-based solutions to reduce the risks of climate change. GWT have also built strong relationships with the Environment Agency and local councils. This helps them to identify opportunities to protect people and the environment.
By committing to a 2-year plan, we can build community relationships to affect real change.
As part of the partnership, we'll:
- Construct swales and attenuation basins (ponds which collect and store rainwater)
- Establish new wetlands
- Create rain gardens and green verges in urban environments
- Promote and pilot Sustainable Urban Drainage schemes (SuDs) such as removing paving from driveways
- Engage local residents, businesses and schools on flood risk and habitat creation
- Develop a toolkit to identify new areas that can be managed for biodiversity and flood resilience
