The £120 million Oxford flood alleviation scheme, which will reduce flood risk to homes, businesses, and transport in Oxford and the surrounding area, has moved a step closer with the final tranche of £55 million in partnership funding now secured.
The Oxford flood alleviation scheme partnership has just announced that it has secured the funding for the scheme, which will include at least 5 hectares of new habitat creation, 7 new bridges and 2.6 kilometres of new flood defences.
More than £65 million in funding has already been committed by Government. A record amount of partnership funding totalling over £55 million has now been given by a wide range of partners. Investment has been secured from Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership, Thames Regional Flood and Coastal Committee, Oxfordshire County Council, Oxford City Council, Thames Water Utilities and the University of Oxford.
Joanna Larmour, Project Director at the Environment Agency, said:
“This is a huge scheme – one of the biggest the Environment Agency is working on – and when complete it will not only reduce flood risk to homes across Oxford but it will also protect vital infrastructure, enabling the city to keep moving during flooding. It will also benefit communities and wildlife in a number of ways, including improving existing public footpaths and creating new habitat for wildlife and improving biodiversity.”
“Today’s fantastic news shows that working in partnership can help us get the best scheme for Oxford. We are very pleased that our partners have recognised the multiple benefits it will bring and helped us secure the funding required to progress the scheme to the next stage.”
As well as reduced property flooding, the railway and Botley and Abingdon roads will be protected keeping the city open for business during future flooding. There will also be fewer flood related electricity, telephone and internet disruptions.
HM Treasury approved the outline business case for the scheme in November 2017 - full funding for the scheme had to be committed before it could move to the next stage. This has now been confirmed as a result of increases in contributions from the scheme partners.
The total amount covers the design and construction costs to deliver the scheme. The project team will now work on the Full Business Case, which will be submitted to HM Treasury later this year. Partners will continue to work together on ongoing negotiations with external companies for future investment in the scheme.
The Environment Agency will submit the planning application for the Oxford flood alleviation scheme in March. It will take approximately 3 years to build the scheme, which is designed to work with the natural floodplain west of Oxford.