Aston Ingham
Funder: University of Chester QR fund
Lead organisation/s: University of Chester and Andel
Team: Namrata Bhattacharya Mis, Gerbren Haaksma, Aston Ingham flood group and community
Duration: 2022-ongoing
Project aims:
The project aims to engage with the local community in Aston Ingham, to understand the needs and fill the gap in the evidence of sustainable interventions required to reduce the level of flood risk in the area using design thinking method
1. To better understand the risk of flooding and the key challenges of flood risk management in Aston Ingham area
2. Co-create sustainable community led solution/s to reduce risk of flooding in Aston Ingham using creative brainstorming
3. To prototype solution and add the case study to an external public facing web portal to promote research visibility for long term sustainability of the project
Project summary: The research project intends to promote impactful community engagement involving relevant stakeholders to discuss the risk of flooding in their area and come up with community lead and expert validated interventions for risk reduction which will promote ownership of solutions strengthening their wellbeing and resilience (SDG 11, SDG15). Initial discussion with the community has generated match funding helped to double the benefit from the project. The project is in its evaluation phase currently.
Workshop/s: A pre-workshop fieldwork took place before the consultation based on which maps were created and areas most at risk were identified. A community engagement workshop was conducted with representatives from the local community to understand the issue and provide a community led solution. Engaging with the local community, council , flood group and parish enabled co-development of solutions. The preferred solution for the areas was to install ground based sensors to provide early warning to the residents.
Project outcome
A community consultation workshop was organized by University of Chester in partnership with Andel Environmental Consultancy Services, Aston Ingham Flood Group and Aston Ingham Parish Council. The purpose of the consultation process was to better understand the nature of flood risk in the area, inform research and implementation using local community knowledge. We have received an overwhelming interest and participation from the local community; approximately 65 people participated in the day long consultation process. Local residents from the area, along with other relevant stakeholders such as members of local council, local politicians and environmental enthusiasts actively participated in the workshop. All members of the local flood group were present. The method used to plan the workshop is based on Design Thinking Solution process. The key stages followed in the workshop started from understanding the challenges, finding possible sustainable and smart community led solutions. Four core solutions were identified by the locals:
- Slowing the flow of water in the uplands
- Making space for water by identifying areas for effective water retention
- Changing infrastructure- e.g., culverts to enable greater flow of water
- Access to the relevant data (e.g., rainfall, soil moisture etc.) which was suggested as the prerequisite for the other three solutions to make an informed decision.
The identification of the four focus points will form the basis for future investigation, consultation and feasibility. Appropriate permissions and support from landowners will be required for effective progress. Conversations with the relevant providers of smart-data capture solutions have started as a first, low-cost / high-value intervention to understand how rainfall in the catchment area impacts rising water-levels in the village centre and provide an early warning to its residents. In addition, the team is looking to bring in further expertise and knowledge from a local catchment sensitive advisor who is familiar with the area and its challenges. With enhanced monitoring, access to data and feedback from the locals, the aim is to promote effective adaptations for enhancing climate resilience of Aston Ingham and its surrounding area.
