The Hull+ scheme – a collaboration between Hull City Council and the Environment Agency – will see an investment of up to £5 million in environmental enhancements to the Dock Office Row area, as well as reducing flood risk to businesses, providing greater economic and job security in the area.

Funded by the European Regional Development Fund and the Environment Agency, it is envisaged that the work will generate additional investor confidence in the area.

It will complement the £27.4m Hull: Yorkshire’s Maritime City project being delivered by Hull City Council. A grant of £15 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund helped enable the project.

The Dock Street area is identified as having potential to be used as a tourist destination in the local plan and includes improved footpaths to the waterfront.

Hull+ project manager Paul Ahdal, of the Environment Agency, said:

As well as improving flood defences in the area we hope the scheme will help provide a springboard for development and help continue to attract tourists to the city following the success of Hull 2017 City of Culture.

Councillor Daren Hale, Hull City Council’s Portfolio Holder for Economic Investment and Regeneration, said:

It is great to see work starting in this area. It marks the beginning of an exciting journey ahead as we embark on an ambitious project to reconnect this part of the city centre with the waterfront, offering a new visitor centre and dry-berth for the Arctic Corsair telling the maritime story and important role this area played.

Northern Powerhouse and Local Growth Minister, Jake Berry MP, said:

I am really pleased to see this vital scheme coming together, delivering jobs and flood improvements for local businesses. It’s a great example of the Government working in partnership with the Council to stimulate growth through infrastructure and heritage investment in the Northern Powerhouse.

The first phase of work will see the removal of silt from the dry dock area off Dock Office Row.

This will allow the Arctic Corsair to be relocated to the area after being renovated by contractors for Hull City Council.

The silt removed will be sent for recycling and used in the manufacture of building blocks.
The Hull+ scheme compliments a number of other projects in the area which include the River Hull Defences, delivered by the Environment Agency, and the Hull: Yorkshire’s Maritime City project, delivered by Hull City Council.

From Cleveland to Northumberland, there are groups of flood wardens in communities in the North East.

On Tuesday November 6, the Environment Agency hosted an event to say thank you, to bring groups together in one place and show how by working together they can be more resilient to flooding.

Flood wardens – from areas including Corbridge, Morpeth, North Tyneside and Croft-on-Tees – were also given a tour of the new state-of-the-art North East Area Incident Room, which opened a year ago, where it was explained to them the steps the Environment Agency takes during an incident.

Phil Taylor, the Environment Agency’s Flood Resilience Team leader for the North East, hosted the event along with the four Flood Community Engagement Officers who work across the region to support communities in preparing for flooding. He said:

The event was really successful and was our chance to say thank you to them for taking the time out of their busy lives to support their communities in preparing for and during and after a flood.

By bringing the different flood warden groups together, they were able to share ideas about their community flood plan, and learn from each other’s experiences. And it was an opportunity to talk about the work we are doing to recruit more wardens and set up new groups in communities at risk.

The local knowledge flood wardens can provide on the ground is invaluable. They complement our work by implementing their community action plans and offer a key point of contact for us to be able to warn and inform.

Northumbrian Water also attended the event with some of their volunteer Water Rangers as the two organisations work together to understand how both sets of volunteers can join forces.

The Environment Agency’s four Flood Community Engagement Officers – Taryn Al-mashgari for Tyne and Wear, Sarah Duffy for Cleveland, Anna Caygill for Durham and Darlington and Colin Hall for Northumberland – work together with local authorities to help communities understand the different types of flooding, whether they are at risk, and how to prepare in the event of a flood.

The Environment Agency is encouraging people to learn how to Prepare Act Survive in a flood to reduce the impacts of damage.