Working together to adapt to a changing climate
Source: gov.uk (2025-04-04)

Research supported authorities to work with communities when planning to reduce flood and coastal erosion risks.

Working together to adapt to a changing climate - flood and coast

Rhys Kelly (https://www.bradford.ac.uk/staff/rhskelly2/)1, Ute Kelly (https://www.bradford.ac.uk/staff/ukelly/)1, Helen Bovey (https://www.icarus.uk.net/helen-bovey/)2, Karen Saunders (https://www.icarus.uk.net/karen-saunders/)2, Steve Smith2, Kate Kipling3 and Cath Brooks3

1 University of Bradford, United Kingdom

2 Icarus, United Kingdom

3 Environment Agency, United Kingdom

The Environment Agency led on the Working together to adapt to a changing climate (https://www.gov.uk/flood-and-coastal-erosion-risk-management-research-reports/working-together-to-adapt-to-a-changing-climate-flood-and-coast) initiative from 2018 to 2022. Through this research, there was a change in understanding how to work collaboratively with partners and communities on climate adaptation.

The team articulated 6 challenges that exist when engaging with partners and the public about climate adaptation. Then, they co-created tools with 2 communities – Caterham Hill and Old Coulsdon and Hemsby – to address these challenges. The new knowledge and tools led to better community engagement and more effective partnerships. One of these tools underpinned the successful start to a £200 million flooding and coastal resilience programme.

Impact

The Environment Agency used one of the tools, the readiness assessment tool, for 25 projects under the £200 million Flood and Coastal Resilience Innovation Programme (https://engageenvironmentagency.uk.engagementhq.com/innovation-programme). The tool identified risks, ensured partners had the same level of understanding and aspirations, improved partnership working and enabled more partners to be involved, and earlier. This underpinned the successful start of the innovation programme.

A Flood and Coastal Resilience Innovation Programme survey respondent (2021) said:

Without the readiness assessment [tool] the project would probably have slipped by 6 months but [we were] able to identify this issue and change project structure.

The Environment Agency used the readiness assessment tool on 14 projects as part of the £5.2 billion Flood and coastal erosion risk management (FCERM) investment programme (https://environment.data.gov.uk/asset-management/downloads/capital-programme.pdf). 94% of participants said that readiness assessment helped their project do things in a new, more efficient, or better way.

The new national guidance on creating local Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management (FCERM) strategies led by the Environment Agency also used the readiness assessment tool. The intent was for the tool to be part of the assurance process for anyone developing a new FCERM strategy at the local level.

A Flood Risk Engagement Advisor from the Environment Agency (2021) said:

…the Readiness Assessment Tool helps the Environment Agency go a step further and gather insight into how ready some of our communities are to engage around climate change. Having this information helps us to tailor our approach and meet the community [using] the right technique and with their views and challenges in mind.

The research project also created tools for collaborative community engagement on climate change adaptation including a community readiness assessment survey, simulation and scenario development exercise. Projects in the Coastal Transition Accelerator Programme (https://engageenvironmentagency.uk.engagementhq.com/ctap) used the community survey to baseline community views and knowledge and inform engagement planning. The Making Space for Sand (https://www.makingspaceforsand.co.uk/) project in Cornwall adapted the surface water simulation to fit the coastal context.

Measure 3.1.3 in England’s National Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy for England (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5f6b6da6e90e076c182d508d/023_15482_Environment_agency_digitalAW_Strategy.pdf) was related to the research and ensured that findings were put into practice. This included using learning in the Environment Agency’s national engagement skills development programme. The research was integral to the content of training courses such as ‘engaging in changeable and uncertain times’, which was provided to staff from the Environment Agency and other risk management authorities. It is also being used in the Environment Agency’s Working With Others training for engagement professionals.

An engagement professional from the Environment Agency participating in the training (2025) said:

The ‘Working together to adapt to a changing climate’ report really chimes with the ‘bottom-up’ community engagement pilot project we’re developing. Considering the 6 engagement challenges is vital if we are to work more efficiently, effectively and equitably. This report helped me to better articulate the work we’re doing and align with the business objectives of the Environment Agency.

In 2024, the project was selected as a UK case study for the G20 in Brazil. It was presented at a Disaster Risk Reduction Working Group meeting (https://g20drrwg.preventionweb.net/2024/media/102073/download%3FstartDownload=20241118). The G20 report recognised that “the project successfully engaged a broader cross-section of the community, ensuring that previously underrepresented voices could contribute meaningfully to planning efforts” (G20, 2024).

Resources

Environment Agency. (2020). National Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy for England. Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5f6b6da6e90e076c182d508d/023_15482_Environment_agency_digitalAW_Strategy.pdf (Accessed: 24 March 2025).

Environment Agency. (2021). Flood and coastal erosion risk management (FCERM) investment programme. Available at: https://environment.data.gov.uk/asset-management/downloads/capital-programme.pdf (Accessed: 24 March 2025).

Environment Agency. (2023). Working together to adapt to a changing climate - flood and coast. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/flood-and-coastal-erosion-risk-management-research-reports/working-together-to-adapt-to-a-changing-climate-flood-and-coast (Accessed: 24 March 2025).

Environment Agency. (2025). Coastal Transition Accelerator Programme. Available at: https://engageenvironmentagency.uk.engagementhq.com/ctap (Accessed: 24 March 2025).

Environment Agency. (2025). Flood and Coastal Resilience Innovation Programme. Available at: https://engageenvironmentagency.uk.engagementhq.com/innovation-programme (Accessed: 24 March 2025).

G20. (2024). G20 Compendium of Community Based Approaches to Disaster Risk Reduction. Available at: https://g20drrwg.preventionweb.net/2024/media/102073/download.html (https://g20drrwg.preventionweb.net/2024/g20-documents) (Accessed: 24 March 2025).

Kelly, R. and Kelly, U. (2023). Readiness assessment in flood risk management and climate adaptation: A mechanism for social innovation? Journal of Flood Risk Management. Available at: doi.org/10.1111/jfr3.12915 (https://doi.org/10.1111/jfr3.12915) (Accessed: 24 March 2025).

Making Space for Sand. (2025). Making Space for Sand. Available at: https://www.makingspaceforsand.co.uk (https://www.makingspaceforsand.co.uk/) (Accessed: 24 March 2025).

Funder

The research project was funded by the Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management (FCERM) research and development programme (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/flood-and-coastal-erosion-risk-management-research-and-development-programme).

Collaborators

Environment Agency

Natural Resources Wales

Surrey County Council

Coastal Partnership East

Icarus (as consultant)

University of Bradford

Research period
- 2018 to 2022
Impact period
- 2021 - ongoing
Impact country
- England
Contributing to the areas of research interest
- 2 - Resilience and adaptation to flooding and coastal change