Wadley Road, Esther Road, King’s Passage – flood risk management scheme

As Wadley Road, Esther Road and King’s Passage were some of the worst roads affected by the serious flooding in summer 2021, the Council has prioritised these roads for investment to help tackle the issues caused by heavy rainfall, reduce pressure on Thames Water’s infrastructure (drainage systems), minimise risk to residential properties, and enhance biodiversity.

The Met Office says, “four of the five warmest summers on record have happened since 2003, as the effects of climate change are felt on the nation’s summer temperatures”. With hotter, drier weather and increases in heavy rain and flooding, we need to find alternative solutions to storing and managing rainwater.

The design for the area includes the following:

• Permeable surfacing - a permeable road is proposed to allow rainwater to filter through the carriageway surfacing and into the voided stone fill layer below the surface, which provides surface water storage. These stored volumes of surface water are released back into the Thames Water sewer system at a controlled rate over a period of time as capacity becomes available in the sewer network after the storm event has passed.
• Rain gardens - a rain garden is a Sustainable Urban Drainage System (SuDS) feature that provides an opportunity to use rainwater for irrigating plants and to improve drainage by filtering rainwater through the planted area into a voided stone-fill storage area. This stored rainwater is discharged into the sewer network at a controlled rate and when capacity becomes available after the storm event has passed. Rain gardens also provide enhanced amenities, with an improved ecological habitat with enhanced biodiversity and a generally improved appearance to the area. These are being implemented throughout the borough to enhance the capacity of the existing drainage network.
• Rainwater planters (for residents)
  An exciting new trial project to capture rainwater and help to reduce flooding is underway. The Community Rainwater Management team (an environmental project group), working with the National Flood Forum are
  testing out a method of distributed storage to reduce the impact of heavy rainfall on sewers. Subject to Ofwat (Water Services Regulation Authority) funding, we are trialling the installation of Rainwater Planters (at no
  cost to householders). A rainwater planter is a type of water-butt, with the dual benefit of capturing rainwater for you to use on plants and your garden. These also have a planting tray on top for plants and will assist reduce the impact of storm rainwater on sewers. We will be in touch over the next few months to tell you more about this free offer, and how you can benefit.

A preliminary design was developed for the three areas and presented to local people at a community drop-in session on Wednesday 25 May 2022. This provided an opportunity for local people to view the plans and make recommendation for changes to the design.

You can view the designs in the useful documents section at the bottom of this page.

Following the drop-in session, liaising with key stakeholders, and undertaking parking stress surveys in the area (which indicate there is sufficient on-street  capacity to accommodate the changes) the designs for Wadley Road and Esther Road were updated and taken to the Statutory Consultation stage. 

Statutory Consultation on the associated Traffic Management Order, changes to parking bays and yellow lines needed to deliver the scheme, took place between 20 October and 11 November 2022, providing an opportunity for the local community to comment on the final scheme.

The design for King’s Passage did not require Statutory Consultation as there would be no changes to parking and yellow lines.

Following Statutory Consultation, the three designs were approved by Waltham Forest Council. 

Construction work for the Esther Road scheme took place between February and July 2023, and the King’s Passage scheme was constructed between September and November 2023.

Unfortunately, due to issues with funding we were unable to progress the Wadley Road scheme to the construction stage. Should more funding become available we aim to reach out to the community in summer 2023 with more information on the Wadley Road flood mitigation scheme.