FAQs

A) Water is very important as a resource to Suffolk and Norfolk as we are situated in the most water stressed region of the UK. Our annual rainfall is very similar to the annual average for Greece. The low annual rainfall, high abstraction rates and increasing development pressures places a lot of demand on our ground water sources, which are becoming increasingly stressed. On this basis, resilience in Suffolk and Norfolk involves the management of water in terms of flood and drought resilience.

A) Reclaim the Rain aims to increase resilience by reducing surface water flooding and drought in areas across Norfolk and Suffolk.

A) We are working with six communities across Norfolk and Suffolk, with aims to reduce local flood risk and water scarcity issues in these areas.

Our Suffolk communities:

• Little Blakenham

• Friston

• Boxford

Our Norfolk communities:

• Merton & Watton

• Thompson

• Woodton

A) It’s important to us that any scheme proposals are supported by the communities they intend to serve. We want to work in partnership, hear your ideas, and learn from your local knowledge.

We are focussing on engaging with you to learn from your local knowledge of flood risk in the catchment, hear your bright ideas for water reuse and address any questions you might have. This focus on engagement and local input at an early stage will inform the delivery of schemes in your community at a later date.

Engagement with our six communities will carry on throughout the project's lifetime, though we hope to have a better idea of what it is we might deliver in each area by the end of Summer 2023.

A) The Reclaim the Rain project will run for six years, from April 2021 until the end of March 2027.

2021 - 2023: OBC and Digital Tool(s) Development.

2022 - 2023: Community Scheme Engagement.

2023 - 2024: Detailed Scheme Development.

2024 - 2026: Construction.

2024 - 2027: Monitoring and Evaluation.

Community engagement will be a prominent theme throughout the project lifetime.

A) The benefits will be unique to the schemes across Norfolk and Suffolk and may begin to be seen during the early delivery stages, although the main flood and drought resilience benefits is likely to only be seen after scheme completion. We expect the scheme benefits to outlive completion of the project in 2027, providing long-term resilience to communities.

A) The ongoing management and maintenance of catchment and community features will be taken on by the relevant landowners and residents via formal agreements. A legal agreement will be prepared before any work takes place to make sure that the land / property owners will accept this responsibility before any money is invested.

A) Reclaim the Rain plans to deliver at least six case studies across Norfolk and Suffolk, so roughly £1 million will be available for each of the case study schemes.

The cost of community-specific schemes will reflect the unique characteristics of each catchment and the needs of water users.

A) Reclaim the Rain cannot purchase or maintain land or any features which are installed, but we aim to create a solution which brings benefits to all involved. While we cannot provide compensation, we will not expect you to take on future costs for the project and will aim to provide you with a valuable asset which promotes diverse benefits for you and your community into the future.

A) We encourage anyone with an interest in Reclaim the Rain to get involved, regardless of whether or not you’re a resident of our six chosen communities.

A) At this stage in the project, our six communities across Norfolk and Suffolk have been selected to be taken forward and so, we are no longer accepting new expressions of interest.

A) You can sign up for our mailing list via our ‘Contact Us’ page to be kept up-to-date on any project news or updates.

You can also check out our ‘Project News’ page or get in touch with us via email.