1. Environment
  2. Flooding (advice)

Flooding (advice)

On 1 April the single new council for North Yorkshire launched replacing Scarborough Borough Council and other local authorites in North Yorkshire.

To find your Councillor or to view minutes, meetings and agendas please visit the North Yorkshire Council website.

Providing a flood warning system giving information to the public, media, emergency services and local authorities. The Environment Agency  deliver this service.

North Yorkshire’s coastal communities affected by flooding from the recent tidal surge continue to get back to business as normal following an extensive clean-up.

We will be liaising with the government about accessing national funding to help cover the costs of the repairs to our infrastructure as well as discussing the possibility of financial support for private property owners that suffered from flooding. Evidence of flooding, which will be gathered by North Yorkshire County Council, will be used to support any such request.

Property owners that were affected by flooding are advised to contact their insurance companies. Should any national funding become available to help private property owners, we will notify those affected.

Anyone not already signed up the Environment Agency flood warnings service is strongly advised to do so they can be directly advised of any flood alerts or warning that may occur in the future. People can sign up at www.gov.uk/check-flood-risk or by calling the Floodline on 0345 988 1188. People can also follow @EnvAgency and #floodaware on Twitter for warnings and advice.

Live flooding alerts from GOV.UK

Useful tips: dealing with floods

Unplug electrical items and move them upstairs (be ready to switch off your main Gas/Electrical supply).

  • Alert your neighbours (especially the elderly or the infirm).
  • Defend your home if needed e.g. sandbags.
  • Plug up sinks and baths (put a sandbag in the toilet bowl to prevent backflow).
  • Co-operate with emergency services and local authorities if you need to be evacuated.
  • Do as much as you can in daylight (no electricity – no light).
  • Avoid contact with floodwater – it may be contaminated.

Sandbags

In the event of a flood, sandbags can be found at the following locations.

Burniston Oakwheel
Cayton Jubilee hall
Cloughton Town Farm 
   
Danby Village hall Commondale
  Cricket field pavillion Castleton
  Station Yard Danby
   
East Ayton Wilsons lane playing field
Eastfield Eastfield Community centre
Egton Horseshoe hotel Egton Bridge
Eskdale side Blythmans Yard Lowdale Lane
   
Filey Station Avenue carpark
  Filey School Muston Road
   
Folkton Church Farm
  Hunters Cottage
  Carr View Filey Road
   
Robin Hoods bay Station Carpark
   
Glaisdale Opposite eskdale Farm
  Mill House
  Opposite Horse House cottage
   
Goathland Goathland fire station
Gristhorpe Manor Farm lebberston
Hackness and Harewood Dale group Hackness village hall
Hinderwell St Hilda's Old School, 6 High Street Hinderwell
Hunmanby Community centre
Newby and Scalby Parish Hall
Reighton Manor House Farm Reighton
Sleights Recycling centre Salmon Leap
Sneaton Rear of Village hall
Staithes Harbourside Side of fishermans store
West Ayton Forge Valley Inn carpark

Flooding and land drainage responsibilities

Within Scarborough Borough Council’s responsibilities, flood and land drainage works are undertaken under permissive powers. This means that operating authorities, such as Scarborough Borough Council, are not obliged to carry out flood and land drainage works. It is also important to note that the Council does not accept responsibility for maintenance of flood defences on private land; this is the responsibility of the landowner.
 

Scarborough Borough Council is the relevant operating authority having permissive powers for:

  • Flood defences on ordinary watercourses which are not within the area of an internal drainage board
It is stressed that the Borough Council will exercise its powers having due regard to the circumstances pertaining at the time including duty of care, resources and other factors.

Environment Agency and Internal Drainage Board responsibilities

The Environment Agency is the relevant operating authority for flood defences on designated main rivers.
 
  • Esk
  • Derwent
  • Hertford
  • Sea Cut (Scalby Beck)
Also critical ordinary watercourses.
 
Culverts under roads are generally the responsibility of the relevant Highway Authority (County Council or Highways Agency).
 
Scarborough Borough Council have agreed with the Environment Agency that within the Council’s area there are approximately 10km of “critical ordinary watercourse” (i.e. watercourses which are not classified as “main river” but which the Council and the Environment Agency have jointly agreed to be critical because they have the potential to put at risk from flooding people and property). Chiefly the watercourses concerned are the non main rivers consisting of sections of:
 
  • Church Becks Scalby
  • Cloughton, Quarry Road, Burniston and Cow Wath Beck
  • Throxenby watercourse
  • Woodlands Vale watercourse
  • Newby Watercourse 
From the 1st April 2006 the Environment Agency has the operational powers on these watercourses, meaning that they have the powers to carry out maintenance work, promote new schemes and respond to emergencies on them. Whilst the Environment Agency will use its powers to control water levels, the powers to provide assistance with sand bags and post flood clean up remain with Scarborough Borough Council.
 
Enquiries relating to these watercourses (with regard to blockages, flooding and maintenance etc) should be directed to the Environment Agency.
 
Please call their Floodline: 0845 988 1188.
 
The Muston and Yedingham Internal Drainage Board is the relevant operating authority for the network of ordinary watercourses within their area which encompasses the immediate catchment area of the River Hertford and Derwent commencing at Raincliffe Farm, Newby to the Western Borough Boundary.