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Chair’s Speech at the West Northamptonshire Council Meeting on 26th September 2024

Matters referred to WNC Uploaded on September 28, 2024

Chair of Kislingbury Parish Council – Public Speaker at WNC Full Council 26 September 2024

To speak at a Council Meeting, it is necessary to apply in advance to be a Public Speaker. You then have exactly 3 minutes to speak. I was invited to respond to the report of Councillor Rebecca Breese, who is the Cabinet Member for Environment, Recycling and Waste.

This is how I used my 3 minutes.

 

  • My name is Jonathan Hughes. I am the Chair of Kislingbury Parish Council. On Monday and Tuesday of this week I put my wellies on and waded through flooded roads in the village. These included the High Street through Kislingbury which although is a designated B Road is a bus route and is heavily used by lorries including the fleet run by Heygates. Vehicles were chancing their luck and driving through the flood both before and after the High Street was closed by the Fire and Rescue service to recover people in cars. One eye witness reported a Heygates driver stopping to throw aside a closure notice before driving through. There was also a need to pump out flooding (again) on the Bugbrook Road as it rises to cross the M1.
  • This is the third time I have had to don my wellies this year. There were floods in Kislingbury in January and February this year, in May 2023 and on Christmas Eve 2020.
  • Following a severe flood in 1998, flood defences (the bund) were built between the village and the River Nene. These have been successful in eliminating flooding from the river.
  • But the bund has created a new problem when the Nene reaches the top of its normal range (1.89) the outfall valves are closed and water backs up in the system.
  • The rain was so heavy this week that it flowed into the foul water system. Effluent and toilet paper were pushed up through manhole covers in Hodges Lane and Starmers Lane/Church Lane. Residents were unable to use their toilets and the Cromwell Cottage Restaurant had to close because their toilets were unusable.
  • The Parish Council wrote to the WNC Chief Exec in July 2024 outlining the Risks that the village of Kislingbury faces, including flooding. We received a response from Mr Nick Henstock (Assistant Director) in August. The Parish Council will be responding this week.
  • As Chair I have also written this week to Cllr Adam Brown who is one of our ward councillors and Mr Henstock about our immediate concerns following this week’s flood.
  • We are trying to get WNC to recognise how flooding in Kislingbury intersects with planning applications and with traffic issues.
  • We hope that this correspondence will develop the working relation between WNC and Kislingbury Parish Council.
  • I would also on behalf of the village like to express my appreciation for the work that Mr Paul McGrath and his Kier team put in yesterday. Seven WNC pumping vehicles attended and ensured the water was removed.
  • It is predictable that Kislingbury will experience similar events in the near future. The Parish Council recognises that Kilsingbury is just one of 166 civil parishes in West Northants. We also recognise that even among those areas with flooding concerns, Kislingbury is not the worst affected.
  • We want emergency responses to go to where they are most needed but unfortunately Kislingbury will have to stay on this list while the current drainage and flood system remains in place.
  • To move forward, the village needs to have far more communication with the Local Lead Flood Authority (LFFA) mentioned in Cllr Breese’s Report in order for the Parish Council to have a say (on behalf of villagers) about measures to reduce the risk of flooding and we will be looking for suggestions about how these can be progressed.

Thank you for your attention.