Natural Flood Management - FAQs

Yes the constructed works will remain open and accessible. We will design any planting including trees so the open nature of the site is retained. Planting will be designed to increase the wildlife value of the site using mostly native trees and shrubs. We are proposing some limited tree planting along the redesigned river channel and along some of the paths. We are not intending to plant dense tree cover to maintain the open nature of the Park.

We are considering planting some fruit trees that are typically found locally, for the benefit of the community as well as providing additional benefits for nature (bees, birds and insects).

The NFM measures focus on restoring the river channel reconnecting the river with its flood plain. The additional storage areas will only temporarily hold water in high rainfall events. As such, the project will not increase the likelihood of rats beyond the existing conditions.

The scheme will use natural methods to temporarily store water and reduce downstream flood risk up to the 1 in 30-year flood events. This should have positive benefits for residents and businesses directly adjacent and downstream of Farr Park. The planned works are just one of several NFM schemes across the catchment upstream of Shireoaks and Worksop, all designed to have a positive impact on reducing flood risk. There are also other schemes in planning being developed by a variety of partners and organisations as part of a wider programme to help reduce flood risk in Worksop. We are carrying out monitoring of the river levels in Farr Park and elsewhere in the catchment. This monitoring will continue after the NFM scheme has been completed which will provide data on the impact of the works on flood risk.

Yes there is a covenant at Farr Park. The covenant relates to not constructing any buildings, not permitting the sale of alcohol, not charging the public for access, and not preventing water from flowing into Farr Park from the southern end under Water Meadows road. There is no restriction on tree planting at Farr Park. We are proposing some limited tree planting to enhance the value and enjoyment of the Park both for nature as well as the community and Park users. The proposed NFM scheme adheres to the covenant as the design does not prevent water from flowing through the Park. The design instead provides extra capacity during high rainfall events.

The proposed NFM at Farr Park is just one of several NFM schemes across the catchment upstream of Shireoaks and Worksop, all designed to have a positive impact on reducing flood risk. There are also other schemes in planning being developed by a variety of partners and organisations as part of a wider programme to help reduce flood risk in Worksop.

This is outside of the scope of this project. The issue of existing infrastructure through Worksop is a maintenance issue for the relevant authorities responsible for these assets. This question has been raised with the partners working on the scheme for Farr Park.

This is not currently planned. However, the future maintenance of the Park and the NFM scheme will be agreed between NWT and Bassetlaw District Council as some changes to existing maintenance will be required once the works have been completed. This issue will form part of that discussion.

Once the works have been completed the maintenance of the Park will remain with Bassetlaw District Council. NWT will continue monitoring the works and the river levels until the end of 2027.

We have listened to concerns of residents at the community drop in events in May and designed the scheme based on this feedback. The proposed scheme now focuses on river restoration and increasing capacity of the river channel running through the Park to cope with high rainfall events. Additional storage capacity is being built into both fields in a way that does not increase flood risk to surrounding properties. The scheme will have a Flood Risk Assessment produced that will demonstrate the proposed scheme will not increase flood risk to the wider catchment. 

NWT have extensive experience of delivering river restoration scheme of this scale and complexity. Works will only commence once all necessary permits and consents are in place including a Flood Risk Assessment that will demonstrate the proposed scheme will not increase flood risk to the wider catchment.

During construction the works area will be secured. Whilst we cannot remove all risk associated with anti-social activities, we are in regular discussion with Bassetlaw DC about the design and future maintenance requirements of the site.

There won’t be any permanent areas of deep water created through the scheme and therefore no increased risk to children.

We have changed our initial plans based on this feedback. We now have one pond on the west field connected to the river channel which shouldn’t need fencing as we still want the Park to be as accessible as possible. Temporary fencing of the new works may be required to allow the scheme to establish. We will then agree with Bassetlaw DC if more permanent fencing is required for safety reasons or whether we can maintain the open nature of the park.

Our current proposal includes a couple of short boardwalks across a couple of swales on the western field. These will be managed by Bassetlaw DC once the proposed works are completed. We will ensure these are installed to a high standard that lasts.

Yes absolutely. We have been informed that the Public Right of Way gets very wet in the winter so we have listened and propose to improve this by slightly raising the path and installing a level surface suitable for all users. During construction we will have to close the Public Right of Way across the Park and have a temporary diversion. We will carefully manage this to minimise disruption. We have also been asked if we can improve access between the Public Right of Way and the Chapel Walk car park area so a new path connecting the two has also been incorporated into the design.

The NFM proposed scheme is designed to hold flood water temporarily. Most of the time these areas will remain dry. We intend to seed and plant these areas with native wildflower and wetland plant mixes which will also help deter mosquitoes. Low parts of the existing fields will be levelled and graded to reduce surface water pooling and help water flow across the fields to the river channel.

Some of the scrub along the river will need to be removed in order to create the widened river channel. Ecological surveys have been undertaken. We aim to retain the majority of the larger trees. Tree planting is also planned as part of the restoration once works are complete - along the new river channel bank and along the newly created paths. These will be native UK species which are suited to living next to water.

Yes this is planned as they will establish quicker and be less prone to damage from drought or dogs.

This has been a key part of the design process. The NFM proposal retains all spoil on site and utilises this spoil as part of the NFM scheme. On the eastern field low bunds are proposed with newly surfaced paths on top. These bunds have been designed so they will not impede surface drainage for surrounding housing and improve access across the site for Park users.

Yes if applicable during the construction any accumulated silt will be removed. In addition, pollution control measures will be put in place to prevent silt being disturbed. The proposed NFM scheme will build on the great work done by Bassetlaw DC on this issue.

Yes further community drop in events will be planned when the designs, agreements and permissions are finalised and we are better placed to give clearly certainty and feedback on the proposed works. The main works will be carried out by competent contractors but once complete we will certainly be interested in how the community can get involved and take ownership through things like planting. This approach has worked well on other schemes where the community play an active role such as at Anston Stones Wood and Shireoaks Colliery.

Yes that is the plan. We love our furry friends. We have been very careful to ensure the site can be enjoyed in the way it is currently. Most of the fields will remain as amenity grassland. Some areas may be managed more as wildflower rich grassland rather than short cut amenity grassland. These areas are just as good for our four-legged friends as for people and nature.

In normal conditions the river running through the Park is quite narrow and shallow. We intend to keep this low flow channel narrow in order to reduce the silt maintenance requirement. The proposed scheme allows the river to cope better in high flow events and this will be the same with regard to silt. We cannot control the amount of sediment in the river water but we have additional monitoring equipment that will be monitoring this issue and this will give valuable information on the impact the scheme will have on suspended sediment. Future maintenance of the river corridor sits with the landowner. 

The proposed scheme will greatly enhance the river corridor through Farr Park for wildlife, turning the river into a less incised channel with better connection with lowered banks and reprofiled channel. This should result in an increase in fish and invertebrates using the river which in turn will attract birds and insects. We intend to plant up the new banks with suitable grass and flower mixes as well as plant native trees along the river bank and paths.

The proposed pond on the western field alongside the river channel will have a maximum depth of 1.5 m and will have a gradual bank as well as swales linking the pool to the river. It will be designed to only fill in high rainfall events. It is unlikely this will have permanent water. The pond will likely to be dry in the summer and hold shallow rainfall in winter as the field does currently.

When all permits and consents are in place. Currently we are considering some pre-works, including removing litter from the river, which will occur later in the autumn. We currently don’t have a start date and will share this when this is available.

The main works are likely to be phased with the construction timescale unknown at this stage. We will know this information later in the Autumn when we have tendered for the construction and will provide further information as soon as this is available.