Environment Agency’s online consultation hub

On 12 December 2022 the Environment Agency published updated  flood risk management plans (FRMPs)  for England to cover the period from 2021 - 2027.  

FRMPs set out how organisations, stakeholders and communities will work together to manage flood risk in England. 

They are strategic plans that set out how to manage flood risk in nationally identified flood risk areas (FRAs) for the period 2021-2027, and are statutory plans required by the Flood Risk Regulations 2009. 

We have worked together with Lead Local Flood Authorities (LLFAs) and risk management authorities (RMAs) to produce the latest plans and a public consultation of the draft plans was held between October 2021 and January 2022. 

We received 255 responses in total to the consultation. The main themes you raised were: 

• Partnerships – the value of working in partnership to plan and deliver flood risk management solutions. 

• Engagement – the value of engagement and working in partnership with all organisations and government departments. 

• Nature-based solutions – support for the implementation of nature-based solutions, including natural flood management techniques, so more biodiversity and environmental benefits can be delivered across the flood and water environment. 

• Catchment-based approach – support for and a greater emphasis on this for flood risk management. 

• Alignment - the need to align with other plans and strategies so delivery is effective, for example, local nature recovery strategies, and shoreline management plans. 

• Land management – the need to consider all land uses, when assessing and managing flood risk, including the benefits of agricultural land. 

• Climate change and adaptation – the importance of working together across all organisations to adapt and having better information on factors such as the carbon footprint of the measures. 

• Funding – the need to identify funding and resources for the timely delivery of measures. 

• Readability – the ability to find information in the plans and within flood plan explorer. 

On 18 May 2022 we published a summary of responses. 

Responses received were analysed to identify actions to take as result of the consultation, and implement any changes needed in the FRMPs and to the associated Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). We have also published the Habitats Regulations Assessment and the SEA Statement of Environmental Particulars.

The consultation feedback was compiled in two documents:

• a summary of responses, published on 18 May 2022
• a ‘You said we did’ document, published on 12 December 2022.

The ‘You said, we did’ document explains how the feedback received from the consultation on the draft FRMPs was integrated into the final FRMPs. It builds on the summary of responses document published in May 2022 and describes the work that the Environment Agency and other risk management authorities are committing to undertake until 2027.