The River Stour (Kent) Internal Drainage Board

The River Stour (Kent) Internal Drainage Board is a public sector organisation, responsible for flood protection and land drainage in the East Kent. Our Drainage District stretches from Lenham Heath in the far west to Richborough and Deal in the East, and from Sellinge in the south, up to Reculver in the north. Our drainage district is largely rural and agricultural, but covers large areas of the urban extents of Ashford, Canterbury and Sandwich. It also encompasses large areas of marshland in the Wantsum Channel and the Lydden Valley and the following Environment Agency maintained Main Rivers:

Great Stour, East Stour, Little Stour, Ruckinge Dyke, Whitewater Dyke, Aylesford Stream, Sarre Penn, Wantsum and North & South Streams (and other tributaries of these watercourses).

Our Drainage District key facts:

·         Total area of the Drainage District:  11,909 hectares

·         Catchment area draining to and including the District:  39,000 hectares

·         Area of agricultural land:  9,469 hectares

·         Area of other (non-agricultural) land:  2,440 hectares

·         Water level control structures:  143

·         Watercourses (maintained):  211 km

The Service We Provide

We work in partnership with local councils, the Environment Agency and other local partners to reduce the risk of flooding to agricultural, residential and industrial land and are overseen by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). We carry out an annual programme of maintenance works to ensure water levels are kept at an appropriate and safe level.