Here’s how many gullies have been cleaned in Northampton in the past three years – and why hundreds are still missed each year, raising the risk of flooding

A Freedom of Information request has shown the scale of gully-cleansing work carried out over the past three years by West Northamptonshire Council’s contractors, Kier.

One year ago this month, Storm Bert triggered a major incident across Northamptonshire, bringing widespread and significant flooding to the town.

As winter approaches this year, Chronicle and Echo submitted the request to understand how the council is keeping drains clear – which helps prevent surface flooding during heavy rain.

Here’s what the data says…

In 2023, 13,500 gullies were due to be cleaned. This rose to 19,400 in 2024 and 20,400 in 2025.

The council said: “During the COVID period, many gullies could not be cleaned due to parked vehicles obstructing access. This disruption impacted gullies scheduled for biannual or triennial maintenance, creating a knock-on effect on subsequent years’ programmes. In addition, a significant increase in new road adoptions has further added to the overall workload.”

In practice, 9,300 gullies were cleaned in 2023 (out of 13,400 scheduled, 69 per cent), 18,000 in 2024 (out of 19,400, 93per cent), and 23,600 by 5 November 2025 – more than the 20,400 scheduled – because crews also cleared gullies that had been missed in previous years.

The council said: “All maintenance activities are up to date and managed through a risk-based model that prioritises work based on silt levels. Each time a gully is cleansed, the silt level is recorded along with other relevant factors such as location on slopes, historical issues, and surrounding conditions. These data points are then used to determine priority for future maintenance.

“All gullies in Northampton are cleansed on a cyclical programme dependant on the data collected at the previous visit; this will be set at six monthly, Annually, Biennial, or Triennially.”

Not all drains could be cleared because parked cars blocked access. In 2023, 750 gullies were missed (6% of those scheduled), rising to 2,560 in 2024 (13%) before falling to 1,120 in 2025 (5%).

The council said: “The higher number of gullies cleaned compared to the schedule is a result of the knock-on effect following COVID-19. Gullies that were inaccessible in previous years due to parked vehicles were brought forward for cleaning.”

Reacting to the data, independent councillor Julie Davenport said access problems and poor coordination continue to affect Far Cotton in her ward.

She said: “In 2021, we became a unitary council and were assured services would work better together. But for residents in Far Cotton – a Flood Zone 3 area – this hasn’t been the case. Many of us have already lived through the devastation of having our ground floors completely gutted after floods.

“Drain cleaning only happens when the council’s vehicle can reach the drains. Residents are told to move their cars, but many are away with work or holidays, or the cars belong to students and workers who park in the area. Although the letters warn that cars may be towed, this never actually happens.

“The lack of coordination between council departments is clear. We need a system, like One Network, that shows all planned works so departments stop overlapping.

“Flood Zone areas should have a different sweeping and maintenance strategy. I report leaf build-ups constantly, but the council seems to use a one-size-fits-all approach. Scrutiny should look into this.

“For those of us who have been flooded before, every flood warning is frightening – and blocked drains make that fear much worse.”