Deerhurst flood wall impresses minister |Gloucestershire news

EFFORTS to protect Deerhurst from flooding should become a model for the rest of the country.

That was the view of Floods Minister Huw Irranca-Davies on a visit to the village, near Tewkesbury, yesterday.

ON TOUR: Huw Irranca-Davies in Deerhurst – he described the flood protection as 'absolutely brilliant'
WALL OF STEEL: Huw Irranca-Davies (centre) with (l-r) George Tomlin, Environment Agency technical specialist; Andrew Leeke; Anthony Perry, Environment Agency flood risk manager; and Councillor Will Windsor-Clive, cabinet member for community safety with Gloucestershire County Council
High point A mark showing the 2007 floodwater level

He met residents who helped the Environment Agency build up existing defences in a £590,000 scheme. Apart from some work still needed on a pumping station, it has now been finished.

Mr Irranca-Davies shared the delight of villagers, who celebrated their homes being properly protected. Most had suffered the misery of their properties being flooded in 2007.

The minister said: "This is fantastic, absolutely brilliant. You have created your own piece of archaeological heritage here.

"The great thing is that this has been done together. Local residents, the Environment Agency, county council and borough council have committed to it and that's the impressive thing."

He said partnership working should be the way forward in other flood-prone parts of the UK and added: "Now I'll be saying that we want more of this around the country. This is quite inspiring to see."

Residents formed the Deerhurst Community Preservation group after 18 of the village's 21 homes flooded in 2007.

They were determined to raise the height of earth bunds around the village and that has now been done. The group invested £50,000 and provided much of the soil to raise the wall by an average 2ft.

The scheme has also seen three steel gates installed as part of the flood barrier. The plan is for it to keep at bay flooding from the nearby River Severn.

Group chairman, Andrew Leeke, said: "In terms of flood defence, the village is secure. The agency has delivered a state-of-the-art flood defence, but it was us that pushed the whole thing along all the time.

"We were not prepared to accept our houses being flooded."

He said the finished scheme was "excellent" and he wanted everyone to know that people could now live in Deerhurst without worrying about their homes flooding. Villager David Gardner, who had 5ft of water in his home in 2007, said: "We're delighted. The work has been tremendous."

OPINION, P8