Storm Babet floods Suffolk communities

Suffolk County Council published a detailed flood investigation report into the flooding at Debenham during Storm Babet in October 2023, the authority announced on 31 July 2024¹. Debenham is listed by the council among the communities with five or more confirmed internally flooded properties, with the Environment Agency named as lead authority for its investigation².

The report sets out short, medium and longer term recommendations. Short term measures include community flood plans, maximising Property Flood Resilience (PFR) grants, removal of blockages in watercourses and drainage infrastructure, improvements to flood warning systems and sensitive land management, some of which have already been taken. Medium and longer term recommendations focus on potential drainage improvements and new natural flood management features in the catchment, which the council says would require external funding and collaboration with landowners and communities¹.

A month's worth of rain fell in 24 hours, flooding more than 900 homes and businesses³. The council's Storm Babet page records that over 40 communities met the criteria for an investigation, with over 750 properties across Suffolk confirmed to have been internally flooded, and estimates that between 60 and 80 investigations may be required, against three or four in a normal year².

The council has a duty under Section 19 of the Flood and Water Management Act to investigate significant flooding. Its published criteria include internal flooding of five or more properties in a specific location, internal flooding of one property on more than one occasion, or a major transport route closed for more than 10 hours². The council states that it has no powers to require any of the responsible bodies to take action².

Source: Suffolk County Council². The full table lists 48 communities.

Why it matters for households

The recommendations apply to households that flooded in October 2023 and to communities awaiting investigation. The council says the scale of the task means it will take up to two years to complete all the investigations and publish the results, and that the lead authority will contact a community when its investigation is ready to begin². It also states that some communities may wish to pursue resilience works sooner, and that they should be mindful of the consents and permissions likely to be required².

On money, the council's PFR grant scheme page states that applications for the DEFRA PFR scheme (2023) are now closed⁴. Grants were only available to people who suffered internal flood damage during Storm Babet, between 19 and 25 October 2023, and properties needed to have reported the damage through the Highways Reporting Tool and received an invitation to apply⁴. The council notes there is always a residual risk that people and properties will still be flooded⁴.

The Environment Agency's flood risk figures, quoted by the council, put 6.3 million properties in England in areas at risk of flooding⁵. The council points residents to its Flood Smart Living Handbook and the government's flood risk checker, and advises people to find out if their home is at risk, sign up for flood warnings and be ready to take action². Its guidance on flood alerts, flood warnings and severe flood warnings explains the three levels, and its household guide to flooding covers preparing a home and what to do during a flood.

What happens next

The council says investigations will take up to two years to complete and publish, with communities contacted when work is ready to start in their area². It invites communities to begin collecting evidence on where water came from and how locations were affected, using a template available from floods@suffolk.gov.uk². The Debenham report is among those published on the council's flood investigation reports pages¹.