When are they required and what are they?

Flood Risk Assessments (FRAs) are a planning requirement when a site is:

• Located in a medium or high-risk flood zone (2, 3a, or 3b)
• Located in a critical drainage area
• When a development site is over 1 hectare in size

The purpose of an FRA is to assess the development proposals and determine if the site is at risk of flooding and/or it is likely to increase flood risk to downstream or surrounding catchments. Following the assessment, if the answer to either of the above questions is yes, mitigation measures are introduced to remove the impact of the development proposals.

Advance evaluates the flood risk in accordance with NPPF obligations and offers practical cost effective solutions for mitigating the impact of flooding on future development, while satisfying the requirements of the Environment Agency, the Local Lead Flood Authority and Local Planning Authority.