Flood Action Week 2026 

Today, 6.3 million properties in England are in areas at risk of flooding, and as the climate continues to change, that risk is growing. Between April 2025 and March 2026 alone, the Environment Agency issued more than 3,400 flood alerts, around 1,000 flood warnings, and three severe flood warnings. 

That is why Flood Action Week (12 to 18 October 2026) is so important. It helps people to better understand their flood risk, sign up for flood warnings, and know the immediate actions they can take to keep themselves and their loved ones safe. It is also a chance to think of preventative actions for thelonger term, such as installing property flood resilience measures that can protect homes and businesses for years to come. Policy Connect’s Westminster Sustainable Business Forum (WSBF) has advocated for these measures through its Bricks and Water series of reports, chaired by Baroness McIntosh of Pickering. 

The WSBF’s most recent Bricks and Water report focussed on water efficiency and reuse. Although reducing water use and reducing flood risk might not seem obviously related, the two go hand in hand, particularly in helping to reduce the risk of surface water flooding, which occurs when the volume and intensity of rainfall overwhelms local drainage systems. In relation to reducing flooding, water efficiency and reuse can help to: 

• Free up capacity in combined sewers. Many older urban areas in England are served by combined sewers, which carry both surface water and wastewater in the same pipe. Improving water efficiency reduces the volume of wastewater in these pipes, leaving more capacity to absorb rainfall before the system surcharges and causes sewer flooding or storm overflow spills into rivers. 
• Reduce discharge through greywater recycling. Reusing greywater from showers and basins for toilet flushing or irrigation cuts both mains demand and the volume discharged to sewer, further reducing flood risk. 
• Increase attenuation. Rainwater harvesting systems capture roof runoff that would otherwise enter drains or run across hard surfaces. This can reduce and delay peak flows during storms, provided tanks have spare capacity when heavy rain arrives. Larger-scale sustainable drainage systems (SuDS), such as attenuation ponds, work on the same principle. 

The WSBF is embarking on a follow-up project this autumn, which will focus on the implementation and incentivisation of water reuse systems in homes and businesses in England. This will include a roundtable in Parliament, hosted by Baroness McIntosh of Pickering. The WSBF is seeking a final co-sponsor for this work, to join a well-regarded water company and an industry-leading reuse installer.

If you would be interested in sponsoring or participating in this work, please contact Rob Allen at Robert.Allen@policyconnect.org.uk