Do you own land that has a watercourse or drainage ditch on or adjacent to it?

If you own land that has a watercourse or drainage ditch on or adjacent to it, you are therefore a ‘riparian landowner’ and you are responsible for maintaining those watercourses.

Watercourses are any natural or artificial channel above or below ground through which water flows. Watercourses are classified as either ‘Ordinary
Watercourse’ or ‘Main River’. Ordinary Watercourses are watercourses that are not part of a mainriver and include streams, ditches, drains, cuts, culvertsdykes, sluices, sewers (other than public sewers) and passages, through which water flows. Main Rivers are typically larger streams and rivers, but some are smaller watercourses of local significance.

More information:
www.hants.gov.uk/landplanningandenvironment/environment/flooding
National Flood Forum provides information on preparing for a flood:
nationalfloodforum.org.uk