Lead Local Flood Authority
Flintshire County Council has been designated as the Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA) for Flintshire.
As a Lead Local Flood Authority, Flintshire County Council has a range of regulatory and permissive powers in relation to flood risk management and are responsible for managing flood risk from surface water, ground water, and ordinary watercourses. We also work with other organisations and people to manage flood risk from all sources across Flintshire.
As a regulatory body (Lead Local Flood Authority), we have a duty to manage flood risk from surface water, groundwater and ordinary watercourses. An ordinary watercourse is any watercourse that is not a main river managed by the Natural Resources Wales (NRW).
Responsibilities include:
- co-ordinating the management of flood risk from these sources across Flintshire, bringing together all the relevant stakeholders
- giving consent or otherwise for applications for any work within close proximity to or that may affect the flow of ordinary watercourses (land drainage consent)
- acting as a statutory consultee on surface water drainage proposals for planning applications
- recording and investigating any significant flooding
- establishing and maintaining a flood risk asset register
To tackle flood risk in an integrated way across the region, we are a member of the North Wales Flood Risk Management group which includes 6 local authorities and other key stakeholders including Natural Resources Wales (NRW), Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water (DCWW) and Welsh Government.
We work in partnership with organisations and individuals responsible for managing flood risk from other sources, including cross border sources.
These include:
The Risk Management Authority responsible for managing flooding issues differs depending on the source of flooding. See our ‘Flooding and Drainage’ put together by the Highways Authority for specific details but in short:
Water main flooding
Report to either Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water (DCWW) or Hafren Dyfrdwy. Check your water bill to see who your supplier is.
Drains and sewer flooding
Flooding from Private drains are the responsibility of the property owner.
Flooding from Private sewers which are systems that convey foul sewerage and/or surface water runoff from more than one property should be reported to Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water (DCWW).
Flooding from public sewers should be reported to Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water (DCWW).
Main river and coastal flooding
Report to Natural Resources Wales (NRW) by contacting their Floodline on 03000 65 3000; a 24 hour advice line.
Highway flooding
Contact Flintshire County Councils Streetscene department on 01352 701234
Ordinary watercourses
Ordinary watercourse (e.g. streams or ditches) are the responsibility of ‘riparian’ owners.
Flintshire County Council acting as the Lead Local Flood Authority can help investigate issues and has powers to ensure there is no impediment to watercourse flows.
Under the Flood and Water Management Act (FWMA), Flintshire County Council as the designated Lead Local Flood Authority, is required to develop, maintain, apply and monitor a strategy for local flood risk management (Local Flood Risk Management Strategy). In the FWMA, local flood risk is defined as flood risk from surface water runoff, groundwater, and ordinary watercourses. Main river flooding remains the responsibility of Natural Resources Wales.
The local strategy sets out the councils overarching approach to managing local flood risk within Flintshire. It also identifies what main risks exist within communities, the main Risk Management Authorities (RMAs) including their responsibilities for flood risk, and what communities can do for themselves.
Flintshire County Council published its first LFRMS in 2013 and is currently in the process of updating this strategy to align with the 2020 National LFRMS produced by Welsh Government.
Refer to the useful documents section for the existing strategy.
Flintshire County Council has a duty under the Flood and Water Management Act (FWMA) to maintain a register of structures and features (assets) which they consider to have a significant effect on flood risk within its area.
For further information, contact the Flood Risk Management Team
If you are planning on carrying out works in or near a watercourse, you may need an ordinary watercourse consent from Flintshire County Council who are a Lead Local Flood Authority. These works include building any structure (even a temporary one), tree or shrub planting within or near an ordinary watercourse within Flintshire.
Even if you have planning permission or other consents you may still require consent from us for work on/adjacent to ordinary watercourses.
Under the Land Drainage Act 1991 Section 23 the erection or alteration of any mill dam, culvert, weir or other like obstruction to the flow of an ordinary watercourse requires consent from Flintshire County Council as the Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA).
Further details on these can be found on our dedicated Land Drainage Consent page.
Flintshire County Council is designated as the Sustainable Drainage System Approval Body (SAB) for Flintshire but this is separate from its duties as a Lead Local Flood Authority.
For further detail on SuDS please see our ‘Sustainable Drainage Systems’ Page.
Land drainage can be a complex area of responsibility but in short, you are a considered 'riparian landowner' if you own land which a watercourse runs through, beneath or adjacent to the boundary of your land. Watercourses include all rivers, streams, ditches, drains, cuts, culverts (piped sections), dikes, sluices and passages through which water flows.
Visit the Natural Resources Wales website for more details.
Flooding is a natural process and rivers will naturally spill out onto their floodplains during periods of extended or intense rainfall. Flooding becomes a hazard when flood water shares the same space as people and property.
If you are buying a house, extending your home or making a planning application, please check your flood risk using the NRW flood maps. Remember to check both the flood risk from rivers or the sea and the flood risk from surface water for a full picture of risk at your location.
If you live in a flood risk area, you need to understand that risk and plan for flooding. Have an action plan ready in the event of flooding and ensure that your property has the correct insurance, flood resilience and resistance measures in place.
Please see our ‘Floods’ page put together by our emergency planning team for more details.