£3 million to improve Exeter flood defences

Flood funding swells after national spending pledge

More than £3 million has been secured to improve Exeter’s flood defences after a major national spending announcement.

Spending on Trews Weir upgrades will top £2.8 million, with another £484,000 identified for the Exeter flood defence scheme, which was installed in the 1970s and has since been “tested to the limit”, according to the Environment Agency.

It’s not yet clear how and where the money on the flood defence scheme will be spent; the scheme notionally stretches along around 8 kilometres of the River Exe from the northern end of the city, the city centre, and then Bridge Road area.

The city’s MP, Steve Race, welcomed the cash, which was announced as part of a £1.4 billion investment announced for the forthcoming 2026/27 financial year for a host of schemes across the country.

Other schemes in the Exeter and Exmouth area have also secured cash, including Powderham banks improvement, the Whimple flood defence scheme, and the Budleigh Salterton Lower Otter restoration scheme.

“Flooding has caused real disruption for families and businesses in Exeter and across Devon over the last winter,” Mr Race said.

“As climate change drives more regular and extreme storms, making sure our homes are protected by our local flood defences is absolutely essential.”

He added that the latest funding had come after a range of cash boosts last year, including £224,000 for the city’s flood defences, £150,000 for the Devon County Council Property Level Resilience scheme, and nearly £1.9 million for repairs to Trews Weir.

He said the extra cash that has just been announced would “make a meaningful difference after years under the last government where flood defence investment was stripped back”.

“Investing in our flood defences to protect our city is economic investment, environmental investment, and will provide security for our city,” Mr Race said.

“I will continue working closely with the Environment Agency and local partners to ensure Exeter gets the resilient flood protection it needs for the future.”

A video recorded by the Environment Agency two years ago shows spokesperson Richard Cox describing the city’s flood defence scheme as being “tested to the limit”.

“In fact, on three separate occasions, it reached its capacity,” he says.

“So there’s a great deal more at risk now than there was previously.”

He adds that the risk to such a large conurbation like Exeter is “unacceptable”.

Government data for Trews Weir states that the highest water level recorded was 4.61 metres in October 2000. A level of 4 metres is considered the top of the normal range, and at 4.34 metres, property flooding is possible.

Floods Minister Emma Hardy said: “Flooding can turn lives upside down in a matter of hours, destroying homes, shutting down businesses and leaving communities facing months of heartbreak and recovery.

“This £1.4 billion investment will help protect tens of thousands of homes and businesses across the country and strengthen the defences families rely on when the worst happens.

“We’ve already stepped in to stabilise our flood assets after years of decline and this funding goes further, creating thousands of jobs, protecting communities from billions of pounds of damage, and unlocking new homes and businesses in places made safer from flooding.”