Link-up plan for flood review

Worcestershire County Council may join forces with district council colleagues in Wyre Forest for a countywide review of flooding issues.

Councillor John Buckley, chairman of the county council's overview and scrutiny steering committee, wants to look at a number of issues following the rising waters that devastated the area in June and July.

He also wants to draw on the expertise of district councillors in Bromsgrove, Malvern Hills, which includes Tenbury, Redditch, Worcester and Wychavon. The wheels were set in motion following a special meeting of the county council's cabinet last Friday where members heard of the damage caused by the floods, with road repairs estimated at £6 million and schools needing £1.8 million of refurbishment.

He said: "Cabinet members received a report which contained a section on issues for the future. Many of these areas were covered in a previous scrutiny exercise carried out following the floods of 2000 and which was presented in October 2001.

"There were a number of recommendations for many of the agencies involved in helping residents during flooding made, and the county council's then director of environmental services suggested a number of actions that we could have carried out.

"I feel that the cabinet meeting shows we didn't learn any lessons from 2000 and we're only just starting the process of becoming fully prepared for events that could become much more frequent.

"I am therefore to write with immediate effect to the scrutiny committees across the county to work with us at county hall to identify how all agencies are working together since October 2000 and what measures have or can be implemented to reduce the severe impact many of our residents and businesses are experiencing due to the changes in climate and weather patterns."