Have your say on flood prevention

APRIL’S continuous downpours have left much of the country under several feet of water.

And while North Kirklees may have escaped the worst of the floods, memories are still raw from the last torrential rain which wreaked havoc back in 2007 and 2008.

Parts of Littletown, Cleckheaton, Ravensthorpe, Mirfield and Chickenley were left under several feet of water back in 2007 and again in 2008 leaving many families homeless for months.

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Flood alleviation work has since been carried out to try and prevent a repetition.

But while Kirklees has the escaped serious flooding suffered by other parts of the country in the last five years, there are still around 20,000 homes at risk.

Management of flooding from large rivers such as the Calder is the responsibility of the Environment Agency, but the council has new legal responsibilities to manage flooding across Kirklees.

It will now develop and publish a Local Flood Risk strategy explaining where the flood risk is, measures taken to manage the risk and how those measures will be paid for.

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To find out what people think about flood risks and what the council’s priorities should be, Kirklees has produced a questionnaire which is available on its website at www.kirklees.gov.uk/floodsurvey. Alternatively people can call 01484 225377 to request a form.

The questionnaire will help the council to prepare a plan reflecting the public’s views.

A further consultation will follow in the summer to ask the public the types of measures the council should concentrate on.

The strategy will be published next spring and will set out a three to five-year programme of work to help manage the flood risk in Kirklees.