Flood Risk Assessments in Nottingham

The River Trent floodplain runs through the south of Nottingham and extends into Rushcliffe, Broxtowe and Gedling. Significant Flood Zone 2 and 3 areas exist along the Meadow Lane and Embankment corridor, through Colwick and eastward into the Trent valley toward Shelford and Radcliffe on Trent. Development in these areas regularly requires a detailed FRA, and in many cases Sequential Test and Exception Test evidence as part of the planning submission to the relevant authority.

The River Leen and Day Brook catchments present a different challenge. These smaller urban watercourses run through Hucknall, Bulwell, Bestwood and the northern suburbs of Nottingham, and they respond rapidly to rainfall. Surface water flooding is a material planning consideration across much of the built-up area of the city, well beyond the formal river flood zones. Nottingham City Council expects all development to demonstrate how surface water runoff will be managed, and drainage strategies are now required for a wider range of applications under the revised NPPF.

Across rural Nottinghamshire, ordinary watercourse flooding from field drains and becks is a common issue in lower-lying villages. After Storm Babet in October 2023, our team attended Woodborough to assess flood damage and provide technical evidence for affected residents, working alongside the local Flood Group and the local MP. Read more here: Backing Woodborough’s Flood Group at Westminster.

We understand how flooding behaves in this catchment from direct experience on the ground, not just from model outputs. That knowledge is relevant whether we are assessing a city centre regeneration site or a rural barn conversion near the Trent valley.

• Development in Flood Zone 2 or 3 along the River Trent, Leen, Day Brook or any tributary in the catchment
• Development of 1 hectare or more in Flood Zone 1, anywhere in the city or county
• Sites requiring a surface water drainage strategy under the revised NPPF or the Greater Nottingham SFRA 2024
• Sites where the NaFRA2 update since March 2025 may have changed the flood zone designation
• Sequential Test or Exception Test evidence required as part of a planning submission
• Change of use that increases the flood vulnerability classification of a site in any flood zone
• Pre-purchase assessments where flood risk needs to be understood before land acquisition

FPS Environmental investigates how sites behave: flooding, drainage performance, levels and constraints. That understanding feeds directly into every assessment we produce. We coordinate flood risk, drainage and finished levels with the site layout from the outset, so that the FRA supports the design rather than being bolted on at the end.

We are based in Nottingham, at the Criftin Enterprise Centre in Epperstone, NG14. We know the River Trent catchment, the Greater Nottingham SFRA 2024 and the requirements of each of the local planning and flood authorities across the city and county. We can attend site quickly across Nottingham, Rushcliffe, Broxtowe, Gedling, Newark, Mansfield and the wider county.

Every assessment we produce is prepared by a qualified flood risk consultant who obtains and interrogates EA Product 4 model data directly. We do not use online mapping tools as the basis for an FRA. Product 4 data is the most detailed flood risk information the Environment Agency holds, and using it is the difference between an assessment that stands up to scrutiny and one that draws a holding direction.

We have delivered work across Nottinghamshire including post-flood technical evidence following Storm Babet, drainage design and flood survey work for residential properties, and strategic flood risk work across the East Midlands. FPS Environmental has been delivering flood risk and drainage consultancy for over 13 years.

Our Nottingham service forms part of our Flood Risk Assessment work delivered nationally across England and Wales.