Drainage and flooding

Responsibility for drainage is shared between a number of different authorities and companies.

To reduce the risk of flooding from the local watercourse network Runnymede Council runs a programme of maintenance of the local streams and drains.  Where considered appropriate we undertake improvement works to reduce flood risk.

Runnymede Borough Council is also the Local Planning Authority and under the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and other planning guidance the Council, when assessing applications for planning permission, including new dwellings, has to consider both that any development is sustainable and that it does not present a flood risk within the development or to its surrounding area. We therefore assess all planning applications for risk from river and surface water flooding. To satisfy the requirements of the NPPF for sustainable development the Council requires that, where practical, Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) are implemented in all new developments.

• National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF)
• Surface water management for new dwellings