27th September 2024
Please see the below update from Thame Town Council:
Thame Town Council was flooded this week - not with water, but with frustrated residents seeking help and demanding answers. Monday’s heavy rainfall, which brought more than a month’s worth of rain in a single day, highlighted several ongoing issues with drainage and flood management in our town.
Immediate Actions and Long-Term Plans
Thame Town Council is aware that blocked drains and unresolved drainage issues exacerbated Monday’s flooding. Despite numerous complaints from residents, and Council, over the years, these problems have not been adequately addressed by those responsible. Thame Town Council has lobbied the relevant authorities in the past. We now plan to do so with renewed vigour to get the answers residents seek and mitigate future risks.
While our authority as a Town Council is limited, we are committed to advocating for practical solutions to alleviate the effects of heavy rainfall. Moving forward, we plan to intensify our lobbying efforts with Oxfordshire County Council, the Environment Agency, South Oxfordshire District Council (SODC), Thames Water, and even parliament, to ensure necessary actions are taken.
Community Involvement and Data Gathering
To support our lobbying efforts, we have created a questionnaire to gather detailed information from residents. We are seeking dates, images, and descriptions of flooding incidents, as well as information on how long these issues have persisted and what actions, if any, have been taken.
This data gathering exercise aims to collect real-life experiences and evidence of flooding impacts in Thame, both from the recent event and from longer-term issues.
We need this data to effectively lobby the relevant flood management authorities; to help them understand the scale and severity of the problems and prioritise Thame in their solutions.
We want to know:
- Where have you experienced/witnessed flooding in Thame?
- How long has it been an issue?
- How many times have you reported this flooding issue?
- Who have you reported it to?
- Do you have images of the flooding? We want your pictures.
Your participation in our data gathering exercise is crucial if we are to have a significant impact in managing and mitigating flood risks in Thame.
Future Housing Developments
Thame Town Council would like to take this opportunity to address the concerns of residents that future housing will be built on flood plains in Thame.
Fortunately, we have enough land in Thame to ensure that no anticipated development needs to be on any land other than areas at least risk, like most of Thame.
Following Monday’s downpour, Nigel Forshaw from Rubicon Drones Ltd. captured video footage showing the flood plain of the River Thame. This video, posted on Facebook, helps illustrate the direction and extent of the flood plain.
Flooding in Thame captured by Rubicon Drones Ltd - September 2024.
Whilst Thame’s Neighbourhood Plan proposes the Oxford Road Site for further development, the current planning application was rejected by the Town Council alongside other stakeholders and residents.
The developer will be proposing new plans that take on board feedback from the Environment Agency and other flood authorities.
Collaborative Efforts for Flood Mitigation
Currently, Thame Town Council is working with SODC, the Environment Agency, local volunteers and stakeholders to introduce natural features that will slow the rate at which water enters the Cuttle Brook at both Rycote Meadow and the Cuttle Brook Nature Reserve. As storm events bring increasing quantities of rainfall, these measures will help reduce the risk of flooding in Thame and downstream communities.
As previously mentioned, we plan to lobby on your behalf with even greater gusto because we know there are practical measures that can be undertaken to alleviate the effects of downpours such as those we had on Monday.
If you have been directly impacted by flooding in Thame, we urge you to fill out our questionnaire so that together, we can effect change in our town.
