Green spaces herald greater flood protection for Hull communities

The Derringham scheme represents a major milestone in strengthening the city’s flood mitigation plan.

Large areas of the city, including Derringham, were devastated by floods in 2007 with over 10,000 properties affected as torrential rain overwhelmed the city’s drainage systems.

The scheme features six new “aqua greens”, spaces given over to nature that act as temporary basins, storing excess water from heavy and prolonged rainfall, before slowly releasing the water back into the sewer network.

As well as lowering the likelihood of surface water flooding, these Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) also support wildlife and provide green spaces for the local community to enjoy.

Professor Stuart McLelland, University of Hull, said: “Following the events of 2007 we carried out extensive research with affected communities. This scheme goes a long way to addressing concerns raised then by Derringham residents.”

The scheme has been developed by Living with Water, a partnership between the University of Hull, Hull City Council, East Riding of Yorkshire Council, the Environment Agency and Yorkshire Water established after the 2007 floods to help manage flood risk and build community resilience.

Four of the Derringham aqua greens are equipped with monitoring equipment that feeds into the University of Hull’s innovative SuDSlab, a network of sensors providing real-time information about how water behaves in the aqua greens and other flood resilience assets.

Professor McLelland said: “Measuring rainfall and flows through the aqua greens will help us to evaluate how well they perform so that we can develop and improve future SuDS designs and Living with Water’s future plans for the city. As importantly we will share the information collected with residents as part of our continuing consultation with affected communities.”

Cllr Charles Quinn, portfolio holder for environment, Hull City Council, said: “The completion of the Derringham project is part of our wider strategic approach for managing our flood risk against the backdrop of a changing climate and in response to the ecological emergency the city has declared.

“This scheme offers flood benefits for communities whilst creating the habitat and ecology that nature needs and enables Hull and its residents to adapt. It’s a great example of the scale of what can be achieved by working in partnership.”

Every stage of the flood resilience plan was carried out in consultation with local residents. Partners held regular surgeries and drop-in sessions and residents were invited to share their views which helped to shape the overall appearance of the scheme.

Emma Brown, partnership manager, Yorkshire Water and Living with Water general manager, said:

“Derringham is part of the £23m investment by the Living with Water partnership to deliver surface water flood resilience schemes across Hull and East Riding over the last five years. This comprehensive flood resilience plan began with a permeable paving road surface on Rosmead Street, and includes other schemes at Bilton, Orchard Park, and several schools in the local area. The partnership’s aim is to build on the success of these schemes with further flood resilience projects in the pipeline for 2025-2030.”

Living With Water’s Blue/Green plan is a 25-year strategy to create flood resilience across Hull and Haltemprice. It aims to deliver £1 - £1.6 billion of investment in flood resilience by 2080. With 100,000 homes at risk of flooding and 95% of the city below the highest tide levels, the need for long-term, collaborative solutions has never been greater.