New build properties 'won't withstand flooding'

Water management company Wavin Plastics surveyed 100 architects and developers. It said just over 75 admitted to having worked on developments in the last year that did not feature any special water management measures to deal with the effects of increased rainfall or flooding.

Almost nine out of ten (85%) construction professionals said they believed that urban flooding was set to become a major problem if sustainable urban drainage was not prioritised.

Wavin Plastics said its study highlighted the growing need for sustainable urban drainage to be pushed up the construction agenda. Eight out of ten respondents said they believed that not enough was being done across the industry to push water sustainability.

Michelle Fleming of Wavin Plastics commented: "This research does not make for happy reading. Awareness levels of sustainable water management are high, but when it comes to taking action and making a difference at site level, profit still seems to feature as the biggest priority.

"The industry is still very much focused on cost of build and this is where the emphasis needs to change."

She added: "We should be implementing water management systems that not only address the commercial requirements of a new development, but also deliver solutions that will ensure that in 50 years time today's developments are still future proof."

Practice guide

Meanwhile, the Government has published a draft guide today to help planners understand its policy on managing flood risk.

The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) said the 'Practice Guide Companion to Planning Policy Statement 25 (PPS25)' would act as a consultation document as well as "an interim support document" for planners.

Planning minister, Baroness Andrews said: "This practice guide will be central to the successful delivery of the new PPS25. Recent extreme weather conditions have shown how vital it is that strategic plans taking flood risk into account become a core part of the planning process.

"Consulting on the guide will also provide an opportunity to further develop effective tools to make PPS25 policy work in practice, particularly by improving flood risk assessment at all levels of the planning system. Key stakeholders have already made clear the value of such a guide and I look forward to hearing further views."

PPS25 sets out Government policy on development and flood risk. It aims to ensure that flood risk is taken into account at all stages in the planning process to avoid inappropriate development in areas at risk of flooding, and to direct development away from areas of high risk.

The guide can be found downloaded from the DCLG website - link above/right.