The Rochdale Flood Poverty Project

The Rochdale Flood Poverty Project, funded by the North West Regional Flood and Coastal Committee (NWRFCC) with support from Rochdale Borough Council (RBC), examined how socio‑economic disadvantage shapes local flood vulnerability. Introducing the concept of “flood poverty” (analogous to fuel poverty), it analysed flood literacy and home insurance uptake to identify barriers to community resilience. It demonstrated the need to understand local socio‑economic and environmental conditions, community dynamics, and cultural diversity when engaging with flood risk, and developed local flood risk management interventions. Its findings and recommendations directly informed the Resilient Roch initiative within the EA’s Flood and Coastal Resilience Innovation Programme.

Several areas in Rochdale, located close to the Roch and its tributaries, have a long history of flooding. Major events occurred in 1991, 1995, 2008, and during Storm Eva in December 2015 (the “Boxing Day Floods”). Storm Eva caused significant internal flooding to over 320 homes in Rochdale and Littleborough, with many more affected by cellar, garden, or near‑miss flooding. Local SMEs were also heavily impacted. As part of the wider national response, more than 360 government grants supported the installation of Property Flood Resilience (PFR) measures, supplemented by assistance from Rochdale Borough Council’s housing, health, and welfare teams. However, support remains reactive, budget‑limited, and dependent on local discretion. PFR is often poorly maintained and typically only installed after a property has already flooded.

Rochdale Borough Council declared a Climate Emergency in 2019 and published its Climate Change Strategy and Delivery Plan in 2022, which includes flood‑related objectives and a wider commitment to tackling the social and economic justice dimensions of climate change.

The project examined barriers to flood resilience, such as limited flood literacy and low uptake of suitable insurance, among residents and businesses, with attention to local demographics, community dynamics, and intersecting vulnerabilities. It developed a set of guiding principles for future work: recognising risk and disadvantage; promoting just adaptation; avoiding unintended consequences; linking adaptation to broader policy agendas; collaboration and networking; community‑led approaches; targeted engagement; and embedding learning.

Building on earlier Pathfinder work, the project further developed the concept of flood poverty derived from factors such as ageing and sometimes poorly maintained housing, inadequate insurance, the cost of installing and maintaining PFR, and high resident turnover. It sought to explore how flood risk affects wider aspects of people’s lives, what new approaches might better support disadvantaged communities and how different elements of flood risk management can be combined to reduce flood poverty.

Littleborough and Wardleworth were selected as case studies due to their location in the Roch valley corridor, their high flood risk and significant engagement after the 2015 Boxing Day (Storm Eva) floods. Despite geographic proximity, they differ markedly: Wardleworth sits in the most deprived IMD decile, while Littleborough lies in the second, with surrounding areas showing far less deprivation. The project undertook neighbourhood‑scale analysis in both locations, combining social vulnerability mapping with assessments of physical factors such as the condition of existing PFR. Additional data was gathered through policy and literature reviews, surveys, workshops, focus groups, and interviews. Work was structured into nine sequential tasks, from initiation through to legacy.

Flood risk disproportionately affects low‑income households. In Rochdale, properties that flooded in 2015 sit mostly within the most deprived decile in Wardleworth, with Littleborough spanning the second to fourth. Low‑income households are often concentrated in poorer‑quality or high‑risk homes, and strong demand for rental properties can lead tenants to accept poorly maintained accommodation. These households also have limited capacity to recover, especially without insurance or the means to invest in PFR. Inspections revealed deficiencies in several PFR installations, problems with maintenance procedures, and a decline in performance. This included degradation from wear and tear that has diminished overall effectiveness.

Flooding can severely disrupt financial wellbeing. Insurance is often the most important tool for recovery. Yet home insurance is voluntary and often inaccessible to those who cannot afford it, live in high‑risk areas, or face language or digital barriers. Understanding of insurance is low, and complex policy documents can obscure exclusions such as flood cover. The Report suggests improving uptake by raising awareness of social housing schemes, increasing landlord obligations, using existing networks and advocacy groups, engaging businesses, involving community organisations, and educating managing agents.

Vulnerability is also shaped by intersecting factors such as race, health, housing conditions, and social networks. In Wardleworth & Newbold Brow, almost 12 per cent of residents reported limited English in the 2021 Census. Effective resilience measures must account for these community differences; for example, promoting buildings insurance is less relevant where most residents are tenants. Existing micro‑community networks offer a valuable route for building flood literacy and supporting community‑led action.

The Rochdale Flood Poverty Project won the award for Innovation in Climate Resilience at the CIWEM Flood and Coast Awards 2025. 

It provided part of the evidence-base for the ongoing Resilient Roch project, which is part of the Environment Agency’s Flood and Coastal Resilience Innovation Programme. Resilient Roch is acting on some of the practical approaches recommended by the report to carry out schemes of property flood resilience and natural flood management, improve local financial resilience, and engage with the local community. You can find more about the Resilient Roch project here. 

The Rochdale Flood Poverty Project has provided a new way of thinking about the circular relationship between disadvantage and flood vulnerability. Achieving socially just flood risk management requires integrating climate adaptation with efforts to address broader inequality. The report argues that flood risk management must extend beyond physical infrastructure to address housing quality, financial resilience, insurance access and community engagement. This requires an ongoing commitment to engagement given that communities are dynamic and change over time. It calls for integrated, cross-sectoral approaches involving local authorities, housing providers, insurers, and voluntary organisations.

The Resilient Roch project is ongoing and is putting into practice these findings and recommendations with participation from Rochdale Borough Council, the National Flood Forum, social housing providers, and other local groups to create a connected network of resilience.

Resilient Roch Team: [email protected]