Extra funding aims to protect villages from flooding

A new field drain was installed at Seymour Court Farm near Rode

Two villages will share £248,000 of extra funding in a bid to protect them from flooding.

The Somerset Rivers Authority (SRA) has been working with Mendip District Council on protecting residents of Rode and Beckington, north of Frome.

The two villages were identified by the council as "high priority" areas due to the danger of flooding.

The SRA's board voted unanimously to provide the extra funding.

Rode has been prone to surface water flooding for many years, due to its proximity to an open section of the main culvert.

Any blockages of the culvert put properties at risk, including around 25 homes on Old Brewery Lane.

With help from the additional funding, the existing culvert will be repaired, removing blockages and debris.

In Beckington, CCTV surveys carried out in 2018 found numerous "misconnections" to the existing sewage system had "previously been unmapped" and were in varying conditions.

Several parts of the village are already prone to surface water flooding as a result of inadequate capacity in this system.

Under the agreed improvement scheme, the "high risk" parts of the culvert system will be repaired.

Flood risk engineer Caroline Murray (left) said linking the schemes meant work would be carried out more quickly

Caroline Murray, a flood risk engineer representing the council, told the SRA board the schemes were designed to "provide the most benefit for the two communities".

"By linking these projects together we are able to reduce costs and maximise the benefits of delivery for these two communities within a shorter time frame and with less disruption," she said.

Work on the Rode scheme will begin on 7 November and is expected to be completed before Christmas.

And the Beckington project starts on 2 January and could finish before March.

Follow BBC West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: [e-mail]