Rt. Hon Edward Argar MP – Member of Parliament for Charnwood

Firstly, may I take the opportunity to wish all readers of the Syston Town News all the very best for 2024, and I hope everyone had a peaceful and happy Christmas period, despite the dreadful flooding we saw in the town early in the new year. And it is that flooding that I write about in this, my first STN article of the new year.
As readers will know, the heavy rains on 2nd January saw Barkby Brook in the town burst its banks, causing extensive flooding to people’s homes and businesses along the brook’s path either side of Melton Road. Following the floods, along with Syston’s County Councillor Tom Barkley, I met local residents and businesses to talk about what had happened, and the huge impact it had had on them. Many highlighted that the flood had occurred very swiftly, but, after doing the damage, the waters had also receded very quickly, leaving the devastating aftermath behind in homes, businesses, and mud and sludge on the nearby streets, and wanted to know why the waters had cleared again so quickly.
As well as meeting with the team at Syston Town Council who were all in the council offices to respond to residents’ concerns, I spoke directly with the Regional Director of the Environment Agency that evening to discuss the causes of what had happened, and to ask her to investigate why the floods had receded so swiftly after the damage was done, and also to secure her agreement that one of her senior team would join me in Syston in the coming weeks, to assess what further steps can be taken, with local councils, to reduce the flood risk in the town, and wider Wreake Valley. While the persistent heavy rain, and waterlogged fields meant that the additional heavy rain had nowhere to go, and flooding may have occurred irrespective of other measures, I remain concerned about the amount of silt, including under the Melton Road bridge arches, and the amount of vegetation growing in the brook as a potential factor in meaning the brook cannot flow as freely as it should. I have highlighted the need to clear all these accumulated blockages to help reduce the flood risk, and am pressing for swift action on this.
In the shorter term, along with Cllr Sarah Braker, we secured from Charnwood Council’s Chief Executive a commitment to clean the streets affected by mud and debris, and am pleased that this initial clean by the council has already taken place. In addition, Cllr Barkley is taking up the need for road repairs following the flood damage with the county council. Given the brook has now flooded twice in recent months, while we cannot prevent heavy rainfall, I will continue to press for additional measures to reduce the risk and impact of flooding, and will update Stn readers on progress in my next article. 
 As always, if you feel that I can be of assistance to you with something as Syston’s local MP, please do either write to me at Rt. Hon Edward Argar MP, House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA, or email me at Edward.argar.mp@parliament.uk