Posted on Monday 24th March 2025
Keith Flunder, Staffordshire County Council’s Cabinet Support Member for Highways North
Severn Trent and Staffordshire County Council have made significant strides in tackling ongoing flooding issues in Eccleshall.
The flooding, which is happening in and around the Castle Street and Stafford Street areas, is being caused by a combination of surface water collecting on the ground and the sewer system becoming overwhelmed during heavy rainfall.
Staffordshire County Council is responsible for the highway drainage system, while Severn Trent manages the sewer systems in the area. Because Eccleshall’s surface water system involves assets owned by multiple parties - including local landowners - effective management of heavy rainfall is a shared responsibility.
To date, more than £350,000 has been invested by Severn Trent and the county council to reduce the risk of flooding in the town.
This funding has supported key improvements including upgrades to drainage systems, the installation of debris screens to prevent blockages in storm drains, extra stormwater holding tanks at the pumping station on Stone Road, and detailed flow modelling surveys to investigate the underlying causes of the flooding.
Keith Flunder, Staffordshire County Council’s Cabinet Support Member for Highways North, said:
“We recognise the challenges that flooding has caused for residents in Eccleshall, which is why we’ve been working closely with Severn Trent to find a long-term solution.
“With warmer and wetter winters becoming more common in recent years, we’re also investing an additional £45 million to improve and maintain our highways over the next three years, with £1 million specifically allocated to improving highway drainage across Staffordshire.”
Jeremy Pert, Staffordshire County Councillor for Eccleshall, added:
“We fully understand the concerns raised by residents about the ongoing flooding in Eccleshall, and we will continue working closely with Severn Trent until we have developed a lasting solution to this very complex issue.”
Bob Stear, Chief Engineer at Severn Trent, said:
“It’s essential that we continue to work together with Staffordshire County Council to develop the best and most effective solution for the local community.
“Our combined work is focused on developing a number of options based around capacity upgrades of the surface water drainage and sewerage systems. We will continue to update everyone as the work to find a permanent fix continues.”
The organisations remain focused on developing a long-term solution to increase the capacity of Eccleshall’s surface water drainage and sewer systems to prevent future flooding.