Eight in 10 homes at high risk of flooding in England are now located in towns and cities, according to analysis by the National Housing Federation (NHF). The research found that 839,000 urban homes are classed as being at high risk of surface water flooding, a threefold increase since 2018.
Constituencies in Thurrock, Basildon, Bootle, Sefton and Southport had the highest proportion of at-risk homes. Areas of London, including Hackney, Barking and Tottenham, also featured in the top 10 and had the highest proportion of social housing tenants.
Alistair Smyth, director of policy and research at the NHF, said: “With surface-water flooding a fast-growing threat in towns and cities, this poses a direct risk to people and families living in social housing. Our climate is changing faster than our infrastructure can handle, and social housing residents are more exposed, less protected and least able to absorb the financial shock when floods hit.”
According to the Environment Agency (EA), a home is considered at high risk when it has at least a one in 30 chance of being flooded each year. Extreme rainfall, ageing infrastructure and rapid urbanisation are fuelling the problem. The EA forecasts the number of properties at risk is likely to treble over the next 50 years.
Social housing tenants are disproportionately affected, with an average of one in four households in the 10 worst affected urban constituencies living in social housing. They are less likely to have contents insurance due to costs, leaving them more exposed to financial losses. About one in three of the poorest households in England have contents insurance, compared with nine in 10 homeowners.
Tracey Garrett, chief executive of the National Flood Forum, called for a “step change” in urban water management, noting that drainage systems are overwhelmed by climate change. She said: “Every week we hear from people whose homes have been inundated with filthy water, often containing sewage, and many have been flooded multiple times. Those living in rented or social housing, and on lower incomes, are the ones being hit hardest.”
