Flooding in Skellingthorpe

RE: Flooding in Skellingthorpe - requestor would like to:

A- to see the location of surface water sewers and where they discharge

B- if any investigation has taken place on flooding on swallow avenue what was the outcome of that investigation and why is it still flooding

C- what size are the surface water sewers on swallow avenue to see if they have enough capacity

D- why Lincolnshire county council refuses to fix the problems relating to sewage overflow

I can confirm that some od the information requested is held by Lincolnshire County Council. I have detailed below the information that is being released to you.

a. Based on Water UK 2019 guidance titled ‘Protocol for correctly classifying culverted watercourses and sewers’ the legal definition of the term sewer can be applied to refer to various assets including highway drainage.

Therefore, whilst it is uncertain as to the exact interpretation of the term sewer in this instance, based on a recent report of carriageway flooding which has been received by the Council, it has been presumed that the term sewer is being used to refer to the highway drainage network.

As such, attached herewith is a copy of the highway drainage records for Swallow Avenue, Skellingthorpe (information correct as of 16/07/2025). Note that these records are based on existing information and are continually being updated and improved as new information becomes available.

If the above interpretation is incorrect then we would request that clarification be provided as to the specific assets in question. For the avoidance of any doubt, in terms of surface water sewers maintained by Anglian Water we can advise that there are no such assets on Swallow Avenue. Future requests with respect to assets maintained by Anglian Water throughout Skellingthorpe should be made to them directly.

b. Based on available records, one prior off-programme drainage investigation was undertaken in November 2023 but, unfortunately, limited details in terms of outputs are available. In terms of recent cleansing, assets along Swallow Avenue were cleansed as part of our cyclic maintenance regime in May 2025 with all but one gully recorded as having no defect. Further to the above and based on the most recent report received by the Council, further investigation into the asset in question is being considered. Therefore, given that the most recent flooding has yet to be investigated in earnest it is not yet possible to provide definitive comment as to the reason for the flooding observed in this instance.

c. The Floods and Water team at Lincolnshire County Council do not hold this information.

d. The FOI Act is for recorded information only