Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Education Skills Funding Agency contacted his Department to discuss the cost and suitability of relocating flood defences on the Bowring Sports Ground before December 2015; and if he will make a statement.

The Environment Agency has no record of any contact from the Education Skills Funding Agency prior to December 2015. The Environment Agency was contacted by the Education Skills Funding Agency in December 2015 regarding the potential purchase of land in Bowring Sports Ground to build a new school on the site.

The Environment Agency met the Education Skills Funding Agency in March 2016 to discuss their proposals and to provide planning advice. No change to the flood defences was proposed at that time. The proposal to relocate flood defences on the Bowring Sports Ground site was first put forward in June 2017 by Robert West Architects and discussions with them are ongoing.

The Environment Agency requires developers to demonstrate that their proposals do not increase flood risk. The Environment Agency is a statutory consultee in the planning process. The Environment Agency will not support any application which does not include an adequate flood risk assessment. The Environment Agency will assess detailed proposals and a flood risk assessment in relation to this application, once provided by Robert West Architects.

The developer will be liable for the costs of any modification to the flood defences.