Flooding

Storm Bert update, November 2024

Support for those affected by flooding

Support may be available for those affected by flooding during Storm Bert. If you have been affected, please contact us providing the details below so we can get in touch should support from the government become available:

name, email address, home or business address
date and time that the flooding occurred
photograph and/or video evidence of the flooding
a map showing where the flooding occurred
if pumping was required to protect property
if sewage services and/or septic tanks were affected
whether flood wardens used Parish Emergency Assistance Scheme (PEAs) supplies

For homes affected by flooding: please email these details to: customerservices@wiltshire.gov.uk

For businesses affected by flooding: please email these details to: hello@swgrowthhub.co.uk, or call 01249 477287

Details of the support provided for Storm Babet and Storm Henk are available here: Storm Babet and Storm Henk flooding grants.

Travel update

All roads reported as affected by flooding are now open. Smaller roads may still be affected so please drive carefully and never attempt to drive through floodwater.

For live highways updates, see:

one.network map (opens new window)

Contact the council to report a flooded road: MyWilts online reporting.

Schools update

Your child's school will contact you directly if it is closed due to flooding.

Council offices update

All hubs and offices are now operating their normal opening times.

Waste collection update

Household collections are back to normal. Any service disruptions are reported on our Waste collection service disruption page.

All household recycling centres are open.

Current flood alerts and warnings

For all flood alerts in Wiltshire, see: Wiltshire - flood alerts (gov.uk)

For all flood warnings in Wiltshire, see: Wiltshire - flood warnings (gov.uk)

Flood warning levels explained

What flood alerts and flood warnings mean:

severe flood warning: severe flooding and danger to life, these are issued when flooding is posing a significant risk to life or disruption to communities
flood warning: flooding is expected and you should take immediate actions, you should take action when a flood warning is issues and not wait for a severe flood warning
flood alert: flooding is possible and you need to be prepared

More information about these flood warnings can be found on Flood alerts and warnings: what they are and what to do (gov.uk).

Further information

Sign up for flood warnings

Check for flooding in your area and sign-up for warnings: Check for flooding in England (gov.uk), or call Floodline on 0845 988 1188.

Preparing for flooding

Prepare for flooding: Protect your property (gov.uk) - find out what you can do to protect your property.

Prepare your business for flooding (gov.uk) - having a plan before flooding strikes will make your business more resilient and help you to get back to business as usual in the shortest possible time.

What to do after a flood

Follow the government advice for what to do after a flood: What to do after a flood (gov.uk). This includes guidance for those who rent their property.

Remember, safety is key:

do not turn on your water, gas or electricity - get your utilities company or a qualified engineer to check they are safe first
do not drink your tap water if you notice a change in the colour, taste or smell - contact your water company if this happens
do not eat any food that has been contaminated by flood water

Flood damaged furniture and carpets

Households and business with flood damaged furniture and carpets should check with their insurance company before disposing of anything - damage may need to be assessed and they may offer you assistance.

Residents wanting to dispose of flood damaged items can use their local household recycling centre (HRC), open as usual, see: HRCs locations and opening times. Bulky waste collections can be booked by calling 0300 456 0102, do not store waste on the roadside until your collection date. Business waste will need to be disposed of via your normal collection provider.

Flood defence and land drainage

For information or assistance with flood defence or land drainage matters, contact drainage@wiltshire.gov.uk (opens new window) or phone 0300 456 0105.

Homes or business significantly impacted by flooding from Storm Babet (Oct 2023) or Storm Henk (Jan 2024) were able to apply for Government grant funding. There were different types of support depending on the damage and type of property affected.

Details of grants made available

Property Flood Resilience (PFR) Grant Scheme, Storm Babet and Storm Henk

Grants of up to £5,000 were made available to eligible local authorities to help homes and businesses become more resilient to flooding by helping to pay for a range of property improvements. 

The Property Flood Resilience (PFR) grant is closed for applications but if you have any further information since submitting your application (such as photos, videos, or a survey report), email them to drainage@wiltshire.gov.uk.

Update on cluster site surveys for PFR (Nov 2024)

Surveys are currently being undertaken on successful grant applications, and reports are being prepared or have already been issued. If you have not been contacted to arrange a survey visit, email us: drainage@wiltshire.gov.uk.

Wiltshire Council are unable to recommend contractors or suppliers to carry out works required. Blue Pages (bluepages.org.uk) is an independent flood directory of contractors that may be useful.

Claiming the Grant

Upon completion of resilience works (property improvements), a claim for payment of the grant should be made by email to: drainage@wiltshire.gov.uk, using our payment request form (available in Word or Open Document Text format):

Please note that the following must be provided:

photo evidence showing agreed measures have been installed
your PFR Survey Report (if not provided by our surveyors)
invoices for PFR surveys (if arranged privately) and installation works
completed and signed PFR Grant Payment Form

Closing dates for payment requests are as follows:

Storm Babet (Oct 23): 1 July 2025
Storm Henk (Jan 24): 1 October 2025

Farm Recovery Fund (FRF), Storm Henk

The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) confirmed it would be delivering the FRF directly. The scheme eligibility included local authority areas covered by the overarching Flood Recovery Framework for Storm Henk, which includes Wiltshire. The RPA contacted eligible applicants directly, letting them know how much funding they would receive.

Farm Recovery Funds (FRF) are still being processed by the RPA.

Community Recovery Grant, Storm Henk, closed

Grants of up to £500 were made available to help affected severely affected flooding households with their immediate recovery.

Business Recovery Grant, Storm Henk, closed

Grants of up to £2,500 per small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) were made available to support businesses that suffered severe impacts from the floods.