Flood safety for churches

A nearby river may be an obvious flood risk, but sometimes the risk may be less clear. You can check your situation in several ways:

• The Environment Agency (EA - England and Wales) and Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) offer an online postcode search to see if your local area is at risk
• You can sign up for Flood Warnings Direct from EA to receive warnings by phone, text, or email. SEPA offers a similar warning system by phone
• Your local authority can tell you what flood prevention schemes are available or are planned in your area.

Specialist advice is available from the National Flood Forum.

If your church is at risk, you can take steps to form a barrier against floodwater getting into your church or other properties. You can:

• Use temporary flood barriers/defences both around the buildings themselves and the perimeter where water can get in.
• For basic and emergency protection, have sandbags or similar alternatives on site and ready to use.
• If you have a brick building, fit air brick covers to prevent water from entering the property - these can be removed when flood waters have receded.
• Fit non-return valves to drainage systems to prevent water from backing up into the property.
• Use pump and sump systems to mitigate damage.

Making your church building more resilient can reduce the impact of water entering your church and aid the recovery process. Steps you can take include:

• Raising electrical sockets, fuse boxes, controls and wiring above likely flood levels. If rewiring, bring cables down the wall to meet the raised socket so cabling isn’t affected by flood water.
• Where possible, relocate vulnerable items to higher levels. Try to raise as much contents as possible above likely flood levels.
• Church halls may need to consider flood-resistant flooring, such as concrete with tiles instead of carpet.
• Where possible, use plaster on walls (or on part of the wall) as it is more water-resistant.
• If you can, use flood-proof materials such as plastic skirting, stainless steel or solid wood. Plastic or even removable fixtures/fittings may good choice at vulnerable levels.

If the worst happens and you are flooded, make sure you:

• Contact your insurer (for Ecclesiastical, call 0345 603 8381). We will give guidance and instruct specialists on drying out and cleaning up your property, and making any repairs or replacements.
• Take photographs of areas or items affected by floodwater.
• Always beware of flood water as it could be contaminated. Be cautious, and if you must touch the water, use anti-bacterial hand gel.
• Open the doors to reduce humidity, but ensure the building is secure when you leave.
• Don’t throw away any damaged items until your insurer says it is ok to do so. They will work with you to get your building back in use as soon as possible.
• Make certain any emergency works comply with Listed Building legislation if appropriate.