The government's collection of flooding health guidance and advice was updated on 20 July 2022 with the addition of "Flooding and public mental health: assessment and management"1. The collection is published by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and was first published on 1 February 20141.
The collection states that "Flooding presents a number of risks to health. This guidance helps professionals and the public address those risks and clean up safely"1. Its update log records the mental health document as the only change made on that date; the collection was subsequently updated on 27 April 2023 with a link to the Adverse Weather and Health Plan (AWHP), on 27 October 2023, and on 27 March 2025 with the addition of "Flood action cards"1. The page's last updated date is given as 27 March 20251.
"Added Flooding and public mental health: assessment and management."
The collection as it now stands lists separate guidance for people living through a flood, dated 13 March 2024, and for frontline responders, dated 19 December 2023, together with flood-health action cards dated 27 March 20251. The UKHSA published the Adverse Weather and Health Plan on 27 April 20231.
| Item in the collection | Date shown |
|---|---|
| Flooding and health: public advice | 13 March 2024 |
| Flooding and health: advice for frontline responders | 19 December 2023 |
| Flood-health action cards | 27 March 2025 |
| Adverse Weather and Health Plan (linked) | Published 27 April 2023 |
Why it matters for households
The addition covers the assessment and management of public mental health in relation to flooding, alongside the collection's existing material on the physical health risks of floodwater and safe clean-up1. The collection is addressed to professionals and the public1. The guidance documents themselves are not reproduced here, and the detail of what the mental health guidance advises has not been reported in the pages reviewed.
Households affected by flooding can find the collection's public advice, dated 13 March 2024, listed separately from the material intended for frontline responders1. The site's Floodwater and Your Health page and Mental Health After a Flood: Where to Get Support page cover these subjects, and the flooding hub collects the wider material.
What happens next
No further updates to the collection have been announced beyond those recorded in its update log, the most recent dated 27 March 20251.
Floodwater and Your Health
