Flood Risk Management

The City of London Local Flood Risk Management Strategy 2021-2027 (LFRMS) details the flood risks that the City faces, including flooding from the tidal River Thames, surface water and sewer surcharges and rising groundwater. As a Lead Local Flood Authority, the City Corporation has the responsibility to develop, maintain, apply and monitor strategy for local flood risk management in the area. The LFRMS includes a series of objectives and measures the City Corporation and other partners need to take to reduce their risks from flooding. The LFRMS is available in the Flooding document library.

Reports on a Strategic Environmental Assessment, Equality Impact Assessment, and a public consultation have informed the LFRMS. The reports are also available in the Flooding document library.

The Multi Agency Flood Plan covers the background and procedures for a multi-agency response to a flood incident in the City of London.​ The plan is written in collaboration with the other agencies who would respond and is regularly reviewed and updated.

The City Corporation's Flood Risk Asset Register is a list of structures that we consider are likely to have a significant effect on flood risk. The register provides a resource to assist in flood resilience planning and aid investigations following a flooding incident. There is a Flood Risk Asset Register map.

The City Corporation has produced briefing notes for individual properties in the flood risk area, see the Flood Risk Map to access them. These documents outline the flood risk to a particular property and the planning policy that relates to flood risk in the area.

The City Corporation undertakes investigations into flooding incidents where this is reported to us. In line with our statutory duties under Section 19 of the Flood and Water Management Act 2010 where this impacts multiple properties we prepare and publish a Section 19 flood investigation report. These reports are available from the flooding document library.

If you experience flooding in the City of London please report it to us at Flood Risk.

The City Corporation has now adopted the first Riverside Strategy on the tidal Thames. Much like the rest of central London, the Square Mile is at increased risk from sea level rise. The Thames Estuary 2100 Plan sets out an estuary wide approach for providing flood protection for the coming century. The Riverside Strategy establishes how the City Corporation could play a role in securing the protection along our stretch of the Thames as part of the transformation of the local river flood defences.

The adopted version is now available in the Flooding document library, as is an introductory StoryMap.

The City of London Strategic Flood Risk Assessment 2023 (SFRA) provides the most up-to-date information regarding the risks the City faces from tidal, surface water, sewer and groundwater flooding. The SFRA includes mapping of flood modelling that has been undertaken for the Square Mile. The SFRA reflects the policy framework as of April 2023, a forward look chapter lists likely changes. The SFRA was published in November 2023.