A HOUSE builder has completed work to alleviate flood fears on a new development in south Carlisle.

Story Homes has improved the drainage of surface water close to its development The Ridings in Carlisle.

Before the housebuilder began developing in the area there were historical flooding issues surrounding Oaklands Drive, which is a neighbouring street to The Ridings.

In December 2017 a number of properties on this street were flooded as the land drain was unable to sustain the high levels of rainfall at the time, due to a lack of maintenance and existing blockages in the pipe.

While Story Homes did not own the land on which this land drain was located, the housebuilder pledged to support local residents to alleviate the risk of future flooding and improve drainage in the local area.

An agreement was made to remove the old drain and to install and maintain a new land drain that could sustain the rainfall and prevent future flooding. Story Homes contributed approximately £34,000 towards the cost and installation of this significantly larger drain, which is now in place and is successfully working.

Graham Parker, head of design at Story Homes said: “It’s really important to us that we support our local neighbours and ensure the health of safety of our residents too. We ensured that all elements were considered with regards to appropriate drainage for the area and we agreed to pay for the installation of a new land drain which could sustain the surface water requirements.

“We’ve also worked with Newman School who are building a new school near The Ridings to ensure that there will be no excess surface water from this site. The water from the site will drain through Story Homes’ new land drain system.”

Some residents recently attended a meeting to see what could be done to prevent future flooding.

The site of the new Newman School in Carlisle and the Story Homes site had representatives at the meeting to discuss what they were going to do to stop flooding in the future.

Doug Coyle, the county council’s lead officer for flooding, said: “The meeting was called because six houses almost flooded from water that came from the new school site.

“The defences that we had put in place to protect the houses had been temporarily blocked to stop the milky brown water getting into the river.

“One house was flooded internally and five others were saved as they were able to get a drain cover off.

“What we have done, is become more proactive on the sites, and now the defences have been unblocked. We have done lots of things to stop the water from travelling to the residents homes.

“The water is contaminated, which is why it is milky brown, and the contractors are going to put it through a silt busting system, which will chemically treat the water.

“The water has to be correct to go back into the environment.

“We’re now just waiting for the Environment Agency to give the go-ahead so we can put this into place.”

An Environment Agency spokesman said: “We have received the application for the Story Homes site and are currently assessing it.

Story Homes has recently launched a new phase of The Ridings with new homes called The Story Collection.