The Historic Flood Map is a GIS layer showing the maximum extent of individual Recorded Flood Outlines from river, the sea and groundwater springs that meet a set criteria. It shows areas of land that have previously been subject to flooding in England. This excludes flooding from surface water, except in areas where it is impossible to determine whether the source is fluvial or surface water but the dominant source is fluvial.

The majority of records began in 1946 when predecessor bodies to the Environment Agency started collecting detailed information about flooding incidents, although we hold limited details about flooding incidents prior to this date.

If an area is not covered by the Historic Flood Map it does not mean that the area has never flooded, only that we do not currently have records of flooding in this area that meet the criteria for inclusion. It is also possible that the pattern of flooding in this area has changed and that this area would now flood or not flood under different circumstances. Outlines that don’t meet this criteria are stored in the Recorded Flood Outlines dataset.

The Historic Flood Map takes into account the presence of defences, structures, and other infrastructure where they existed at the time of flooding. It will include flood extents that may have been affected by overtopping, breaches or blockages.

Flooding is shown to the land and does not necessarily indicate that properties were flooded internally.

The Flood Map for Planning (Rivers and Sea) includes several layers of information. This dataset covers Flood Zone 2 and should not be used without Flood Zone 3. It is our best estimate of the areas of land at risk of flooding, when the presence of flood defences are ignored and covers land between Zone 3 and the extent of the flooding from rivers or the sea with a 1 in 1000 (0.1%) chance of flooding each year. This dataset also includes those areas defined in Flood Zone 3. This dataset is designed to support flood risk assessments in line with Planning Practice Guidance ; and raise awareness of the likelihood of flooding to encourage people living and working in areas prone to flooding to find out more and take appropriate action. The information provided is largely based on modelled data and is therefore indicative rather than specific. Locations may also be at risk from other sources of flooding, such as high groundwater levels, overland run off from heavy rain, or failure of infrastructure such as sewers and storm drains. The information indicates the flood risk to areas of land and is not sufficiently detailed to show whether an individual property is at risk of flooding, therefore properties may not always face the same chance of flooding as the areas that surround them. This is because we do not hold details about properties and their floor levels. Information on flood depth, speed or volume of flow is not included. NOTE: We have paused quarterly updates of this dataset. Please visit the “Pause to Updates of Flood Risk Maps” announcement on our support pages for further information. We will provide notifications on the Flood Map for Planning website to indicate where we have new flood risk information. Other data related to the Flood Map for Planning will continue to be updated, including data relating to flood history, flood defences, and water storage areas. Attribution statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2023. All rights reserved. Some features of this map are based on digital spatial data from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, © NERC (CEH). © Crown Copyright and Database Rights 2023 OS AC0000807064.

The Flood Map for Planning (Rivers and Sea) includes several layers of information. This dataset covers Flood Storage Areas. It shows those areas that act as a balancing reservoir, storage basin or balancing pond. Their purpose is to attenuate an incoming flood peak to a flow level that can be accepted by the downstream channel. It may also delay the timing of a flood peak so that its volume is discharged over a longer time interval. We have assumed that flood storage areas act perfectly and give the same level of protection as when our assessment of the area was carried out. Flood storage areas do not completely remove the chance of flooding and can be overtopped or fail in extreme weather conditions.

This dataset is designed to raise awareness of the likelihood of flooding and to encourage people living and working in areas prone to flooding to find out more and take appropriate action.

PLEASE NOTE: This dataset has now been retired. It was last updated on 02/11/2022 and has been replaced by the Spatial Flood Defences (inc. standardised attributes) dataset. This is a more comprehensive dataset of assets, comes with attribution and is updated daily. See: https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/8e5be50f-d465-11e4-ba9a-f0def148f590

The Flood Map for Planning (Rivers and Sea) shows the areas across England that could be affected by flooding from rivers or the sea. It also shows flood defences and the areas that benefit from them.

The Flood Map is designed to raise awareness among the public local authorities and other organisations of the likelihood of flooding and to encourage people living and working in areas prone to flooding to find out more and take appropriate action.

The Flood Map includes several layers of information, this dataset is: Spatial Flood Defences (without standardised attributes), which shows those defences constructed which have a standard of protection equal to or better than 1 in 100 (1%) for rivers and 1 in 200 (0.5%) from the sea. (Some additional defences are also shown). Attribution Statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2018. All rights reserved.Some features of this map are based on digital spatial data from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, © NERC (CEH). © Crown copyright and database rights 2018 Ordnance Survey 100024198

This metadata record is for Approval for Access product AfA256.

Flood Risk Areas identify locations where there is believed to be significant flood risk. The EU Floods Directive refers to Flood Risk Areas as 'Areas of Potentially Significant Flood Risk' (APSFR).

Flood Risk Areas have been defined by the Environment Agency (main rivers and the sea) and Lead Local Flood Authorities (surface water). Other sources of flooding are not covered. This dataset includes Flood Risk Areas defined for both Cycle 1 (December 2011) and Cycle 2 (December 2018).

The criteria used to determine significance are explained in supporting guidance document supplied with this data.

Flood Risk Areas determine where Flood Hazard and Risk Maps and Flood Risk Management Plans must subsequently be produced to meet obligations under the EU Floods Directive.

INFORMATION WARNING

Flood Risk Areas are designed to meet the needs of the European Floods Directive. They are designed for broad planning purposes only and are not appropriate for any other type of flood mapping. Other flood mapping is available which is more appropriate to showing localised flood risk. Attribution statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2019. All rights reserved.

The Pennsylvania Flood Risk Tool is an interactive web map application developed by Penn State University with funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). This application depicts 1% annual chance floodplain boundaries in an online map environment. https://pafloodrisk.psu.edu/home/index.html

This dataset is now retired and replaced with the following: Reservoir Flood Extents - Fluvial Contribution (National) https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/db114020-465a-412b-b289-be393d995a75 Reservoir Flood Extents - Wet Day (National) https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/d81646cf-37e5-4e71-bbcf-b7d5b9ca3a1c Reservoir Flood Extents - Dry Day (National) https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/c66ee97f-49d2-454e-9a19-d48a47bd22ad This is the simplified version of the outline Reservoir Flood Map Outline (Extent) as shown on the gov.uk Flood Risk website. This is one of 3 available "Risk of Flooding from Reservoirs" Web Mapping Services; Maximum Flood Depth, Maximum Flood Extent, Maximum Flood Speed. Simplified in this context refers to the fact that unlike the detailed product, individual reservoir flood map extents are not shown separately, and one merged outline shows the maximum flood extent for all reservoir flooding scenarios together. This is a data layer showing a combined reservoir flood map for 2,092 Large Raised Reservoirs. The data shows the maximum extent of flood should reservoirs be breached, and although the location of each reservoir can be inferred they are not explicitly shown on the maps. The Reservoir Flood Map Maximum Flood Outline (Extent) in its simplified form is referred to externally as Risk of Flooding from Reservoirs – Maximum Flood Extent. The Reservoir Flood Map Outline (Extent) shows the largest area that might be flooded if a reservoir were to fail and release the water it holds. Since this is a prediction of a credible worst case scenario, it’s unlikely that any actual flood would be this large. These data are intended for emergency planning only and are not reliable for large scale flood risk assessments. Please note that only flood maps for large reservoirs are displayed. Flood maps are not displayed for smaller reservoirs or for reservoirs commissioned after reservoir mapping began in spring 2009. Information Warning: The Maximum extent category is available under the standard OGL terms when supplied as a WMS. This excludes the underlying data. Attribution statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2019. All rights reserved.

Set of shapefiles defining Indicative Flood Risk Areas for local risk. Indicative Flood Risk Areas are provided by the Environment Agency for use by Lead Local Flood Authorities in England in their review during 2017 of Preliminary Flood Risk Assessments and Flood Risk Areas under the Flood Risk Regulations.

The Indicative Flood Risk Areas are primarily based on an aggregated 1km square grid Updated Flood Map for Surface Water (1 in 100 and 1000 annual probability rainfall), informally referred to as the “blue square map”. These are 1km grids across England and consist of the following data layers:

• Surface Water Flood Risk Exposure Grid – 1km square grid that shows places above the flood risk threshold defined, using the 1 in 100 and 1000 annual probability (deep) Flood Map for Surface Water. • Flood risk thresholds used to generate the “blue Squares”: - Number of people > 200 - Number of critical services, including electricity and water > 1 - Number of non-residential properties > 20 • Cluster Maps – are aggregations of 3km by 3km squares that each contain at least 5 touching "blue squares" (i.e. 1km grid squares where one of the thresholds above is exceeded) • Communities at Risk by Lead Local Flooding Authority • People Sensitivity Map by Lead Local Flood Authority. Attribution statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2016. All rights reserved. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence

This dataset is not suitable for identifying whether an individual property will flood. This bundle includes the Basic subset of layers from our Risk of Flooding from Surface Water (RoFSW) mapping, previously known as the updated Flood Map for Surface Water (uFMfSW). It is a group of datasets previously available as the uFMfSW Complex Package. The Basic subset includes the following layers: Risk of Flooding from Surface Water Extent: 0.1 percent annual chance Risk of Flooding from Surface Water Extent: 1 percent annual chance Risk of Flooding from Surface Water Extent: 3.3 percent annual chance Risk of Flooding from Surface Water Input Model DetailsRisk of Flooding from Surface Water Suitability

InformationWarnings: Risk of Flooding from Surface Water is not to be used at property level. If the Content is displayed in map form to others we recommend it should not be used with basemapping more detailed than 1:10,000 as the data is open to misinterpretation if used as a more detailed scale. Because of the way they have been produced and the fact that they are indicative, the maps are not appropriate to act as the sole evidence for any specific planning or regulatory decision or assessment of risk in relation to flooding at any scale without further supporting studies or evidence. Some features of this information are based on digital spatial data licensed from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology © NERC (CEH). Defra, Met Office and DARD Rivers Agency © Crown copyright. © Cranfield University. © James Hutton Institute. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2015. Land & Property Services © Crown copyright and database right.This partner version can be downloaded from environment.data.gov.uk.

The Flood Plan Explorer is an online map-based system designed to hold measures associated with the Flood Risk Management Plans. The measures can contain both text and spatial data. Measures can be updated throughout the year and exported for reporting and analysis purposes.

This dataset is not suitable for identifying whether an individual property will flood. GIS layer giving a suitability rating which represents the scale at which it is generally appropriate to use this information to assess flood risk. It is based on the confidence in the modelling at that location. Always consult this layer when using any RoFSW output products. This dataset is one output of our Risk of Flooding from Surface Water (RoFSW) mapping, previously known as the updated Flood Map for Surface Water (uFMfSW). It is one of a group of datasets previously available as the uFMfSW Complex Package. Further information on using these datasets can be found at the Resource Locator link below. Information Warnings: Risk of Flooding from Surface Water is not to be used at property level. If the Content is displayed in map form to others we recommend it should not be used with basemapping more detailed than 1:10,000 as the data is open to misinterpretation if used as a more detailed scale. Because of the way they have been produced and the fact that they are indicative, the maps are not appropriate to act as the sole evidence for any specific planning or regulatory decision or assessment of risk in relation to flooding at any scale without further supporting studies or evidence. Attribution statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2015. All rights reserved. Some features of this information are based on digital spatial data licensed from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology © NERC (CEH). Defra, Met Office and DARD Rivers Agency © Crown copyright. © Cranfield University. © James Hutton Institute. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2015. Land & Property Services © Crown copyright and database right

Recorded Flood Outlines is a GIS layer which shows all our records of historic flooding from rivers, the sea, groundwater and surface water. Each individual Recorded Flood Outline contains a consistent list of information about the recorded flood.

Records began in 1946 when predecessor bodies to the Environment Agency started collecting detailed information about flooding incidents, although we may hold limited details about flooding incidents prior to this date.

The absence of coverage by Recorded Flood Outlines for an area does not mean that the area has never flooded, only that we do not currently have records of flooding in this area.

It is also possible that the pattern of flooding in this area has changed and that this area would now flood or not flood under different circumstances.

The Recorded Flood Outlines take into account the presence of defences, structures, and other infrastructure where they existed at the time of flooding. It includes flood extents that may have been affected by overtopping, breaches or blockages.

Any flood extents shown do not necessarily indicate that properties were flooded internally.

A companion dataset Historic Flood Map contains a subset of these Recorded Flood Outlines which satisfy a certain criteria.

Spatial data supporting appropriately located and designed woodland creation to help reduce flood risk by slowing flood flows and increasing the retention and infiltration of water on the land.The layer shows where there is ‘Opportunity for Floodplain’ woodland creation and ‘Opportunity for Wider Catchment’ woodland creation.Appropriately located and designed proposals can help reduce flood risk by slowing flood flows and increasing the retention and infiltration of water on the land by creating; woodland in the wider catchment – creating woodland here can help to, reduce fertiliser and pesticide usage, protect sensitive soils from disturbance and erosion, increase infiltration and reduce water runoff and intercept sediment and chemical pollutants in run-off, reducing the delivery of pollutants to watercourses.Floodplain woodland – creating woodland here can act as a permeable partial barrier to a river when in flood, helping to slow flood flows.Riparian woodland – creating woodland along watercourses can create a buffer between rivers and the adjacent land, reducing water temperature by providing shade and slowing flood flow water delivery to watercourses.Cross-slope woodland – creating smaller areas (typically shelterbelts) of woodland (all types) across hill slopes can reduce rapid runoff from higher land. Trees also encourage infiltration and increase the soil’s water storage capacity.Data input sources:

Spatial prioritisation of catchments suitable for Natural Flood Management (Environment Agency)

Flood Map for Planning (Rivers and Sea) - Flood Zone 3 (Environment Agency)

Soil-derived spatial prioritisation of woodland creation for NFM in the wider catchment (Forest Research).Attributes:

‘LANDSCAPE’ – the targeting category: Opportunity for Floodplain Woodland / Opportunity for Wider Catchment Woodland.

‘AreaHa’ – Area of the feature in hectares.Lineage:

First published to support the woodland creation grant under Countryside Stewardship (CS), launched in 2015. The layer methodology was then revised by Forest Research and the layer was updated in 2022 to cater for the new England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) scheme.

A detailed methodology describing the development of this layer can be requested from evidence@forestrycommission.gov.uk.

Risk of Flooding from Surface Water (RoFSW) map is an assessment of where surface water flooding may occur when rainwater does not drain away through the normal drainage systems or soak into the ground, but lies on or flows over the ground instead. It includes information about flooding extents and depths. It is produced using national scale modelling and enhanced with compatible, locally produced modelling from lead local flood authorities (LLFAs).

RoFSW is a probabilistic product, meaning that it shows the overall risk, rather than the risk associated with a specific event or scenario. In externally published versions of this dataset, risk is displayed as one of three likelihood bandings:

High - greater than or equal to 3.3% chance in any given year (1 in 30)
Medium - less than 3.3% (1 in 30) but greater than or equal to 1% (1 in 100) chance in any given year
Low - less than 1% (1 in 100) chance in any given year

NB. This is a complex dataset, with preview available only on certain zoom levels. The Web Mapping service has been set to 1:50 000 in the

PLEASE NOTE: This dataset has now been retired and is superseded by a new dataset called: Reduction in Risk of Flooding from Rivers and Sea due to Defences. The Areas Benefiting from Defences dataset was assessed as no longer sufficiently meeting the needs of our customers and partners and was last updated on 02/11/2022. The Flood Map for Planning (Rivers and Sea) includes several layers of information one of which is areas benefiting from defences. This dataset shows those areas that benefit from the presence of defences in a 1 in 100 (1%) chance of flooding each year from rivers; or 1 in 200 (0.5 %) chance of flooding each year from the sea. If the defences were not there, these areas would flood in a 1 in 100 (1%)/ 1 in 200 (0.5 %) or larger flooding incident. Note that we do not show all areas that benefit from all flood defences. Some defences are designed to protect against a smaller flood with a higher chance of occurring in any year, for example a flood defence which protects against a 1 in 30 chance of flooding in any year. Such a defence may be overtopped in a flood with a 1 in 100 (1%)/ 1 in 200 (0.5%) chance of occurring in any year, but the defence may still reduce the affected area or delay (rather than prevent) a flood, giving people more time to act and therefore reduce the consequences of flooding. We do not always map areas that benefit from defences that offer a lower standard of protection. Other defences are designed to withstand a larger flood with a smaller chance of occurring in any year. In this case, we show only the area that would have been affected in a flood with a 1 in 100 (1%)/ 1 in 200 (0.5%) chance of occurring in any year, even though further areas would benefit in the event of more severe flooding for example in a 1 in 1000 (0.1%) flood. The rivers and sea criteria 1 in 100 (1%)/ 1 in 200 (0.5%) chance of occurring in any year aligns with Flood Zone 3 as described in the Planning Practice Guidance. In mapping areas benefiting from defences, we assume that flood defences and other operating structures act perfectly and give the same level of protection as when our assessment of the area was made. Please download our related dataset Risk of Flooding from Rivers and Sea to understand the flood risk that remains in locations where the location of flood defences and their condition have been included in the modelling. Attribution Statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2018. All rights reserved.Some features of this map are based on digital spatial data from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, © NERC (CEH) © Crown copyright and database rights 2018 Ordnance Survey 100024198

This layer of the map based index (GeoIndex) shows where river floodplains and coastal plains in Britain are located and therefore the main areas at greatest risk of flooding. The map shows areas vulnerable to two main types of flooding: inland (river floodplains) and coastal/estuarine and is therefore a key tool in identifying those areas most vulnerable from future flooding. The map is based on observation of the types of geological deposit present and does not take into account any man-made influences such as house building or flood protection schemes. It also does not take into account low-lying areas where flooding could occur but where there are no materials indicating flooding in the geological past. The BGS Geological Indicators of Flooding data should therefore be regarded as complementary to, but not a replacement for, existing Environment Agency flood risk maps. The BGS Geological Indicators of Flooding (GIF) dataset is a digital map based on the BGS Digital Geological Map of Great Britain at the 1:50,000 scale.

WWNP Floodplain Woodland Planting Potential is our best estimate of locations where tree planting on the floodplain may be possible, and effective to attenuate flooding. The dataset is designed to support signposting of areas of floodplain not already wooded. The dataset is based upon fluvial Flood Zone 2 of the Flood Map for Planning. A set of open access constraints data was used to erase areas which contained existing woodland, watercourses, peat, roads, rail and urban locations.The information provided is largely based on modelled data and open constraints data, and is therefore indicative rather than specific. Locations identified may have more recent building or land use than available data indicates. It is important to note that land ownership and change to flood risk have not been considered, and it may be necessary to model the impacts of significant planting.The Environment Agency’s Flood Map for Planning (2016) - Flood Zone 2 (0.1% AEP) was used to delineate areas close to the watercourse in the floodplain which may be suitable for tree planting. The ‘Woodland Constraints’ data was then applied, masking existing woodland, watercourses, peat, roads, rail and urban areas.

Introduction

The Strategic Flood Map (Rivers) map service is a multi layered predictive flood mapping product providing a strategic overview of areas across Northern Ireland that could be affected by river flooding. The Strategic Flood Map (Rivers) includes the following layers of information for both present day and climate change epochs: • Floods with a medium probability

Purpose of the data

The dataset has been designed to raise awareness among the public, Government Departments, local authorities and other organisations of the likelihood of river flooding, thus supporting a more proactive and co-operative approach to flood risk management. By being aware of the land estimated to be at risk of flooding, authorities can develop strategies to better manage flood risk through their planning, flood prevention, and emergency planning functions.

Data Coverage

All of Northern Ireland, with some limited coverage in Republic of Ireland in border areas.

Data Format

OGC (Open Geospatial Consortium) compliant Web Mapping Service in WGS 1984 projection, accessible via secure website (requires authentication by user specific username and password).

Data content

Strategic River Floodplain o Rivers (Modelled/Unmodelled) Strategic River Floodplain (Present Day) o Medium Probability Floods (1% AEP) Strategic River Floodplain (Climate Change 2030) o Medium Probability Floods (1% AEP)

AEP is Annual Exceedance Probability e.g. the 1% AEP flood extent shows areas of land with an annual probability of flooding of 1% (or 1 in 100 chance) in any year.

Companion Mapping Services

• Strategic Flood Map (Coastal) • Strategic Flood Map (Surface Water) • Historical Flood Map

PLEASE NOTE: This record has been retired. It has been superseded by: https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/b5aaa28d-6eb9-460e-8d6f-43caa71fbe0e

This dataset is not suitable for identifying whether an individual property will flood. GIS layer showing the extent of flooding from surface water that could result from a flood with a 0.1% chance of happening in any given year. This dataset is one output of our Risk of Flooding from Surface Water (RoFSW) mapping, previously known as the updated Flood Map for Surface Water (uFMfSW). It is one of a group of datasets previously available as the uFMfSW Complex Package. Further information on using these datasets can be found at the Resource Locator link below. Information Warnings: Risk of Flooding from Surface Water is not to be used at property level. If the Content is displayed in map form to others we recommend it should not be used with basemapping more detailed than 1:10,000 as the data is open to misinterpretation if used as a more detailed scale. Because of the way they have been produced and the fact that they are indicative, the maps are not appropriate to act as the sole evidence for any specific planning or regulatory decision or assessment of risk in relation to flooding at any scale without further supporting studies or evidence. Attribution statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2015. All rights reserved.

Some features of this information are based on digital spatial data licensed from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology © NERC (CEH). Defra, Met Office and DARD Rivers Agency © Crown copyright. © Cranfield University. © James Hutton Institute. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2015. Land & Property Services © Crown copyright and database right.