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B+Hazard risk Grade
Flood & hazards in Water Orton · Environment Agency

None of Water Orton’s homes are at high or medium risk from rivers or the sea; 2.6% are from surface water

On the Environment Agency’s maps, which allow for flood defences, “high or medium” means at least a 1 in 100 chance of flooding from rivers or the sea in any year. Hazard risk puts Water Orton at B+: #12 of 34 in Warwickshire.

2007worst recorded flood10flood warnings since 20060.3%at low risk
In brief

What stands out about Water Orton’s hazards

From the Environment Agency’s maps and records and the BGS radon atlas, below.

Rain, not the river2.6% of homes sit where heavy rain can flood the streets; none are at risk from rivers or the sea.10 flood warnings since 2006For the parts of Water Orton the Environment Agency warns directly; the most recent on 14 November 2025.Low radonEvery 1 km square over Water Orton is in the lowest radon band: under 1% of homes above the action level.
By hazard

What Water Orton faces

Each hazard against its own yardstick; meters run from low to high on that yardstick.

Rivers and the sea

0%of homes at high or medium risk
None at high or medium risk
0 homes by the EA’s own count

Surface water

2.6%of homes at high or medium risk
More than 35% of UK towns
About 40 households

Past floods

1years with a recorded flood
Last recorded: July 2007
1 households inside past outlines

The River Tame

2.89 mhighest in winter 2025–26 at Water Orton
9th-highest of 35 winters
Record 3.43 m, July 1968

Flood warnings

10flood warnings since 2006
124 flood alerts for the wider area
Last warning 14 November 2025

Radon

0%of the town in a radon Affected Area
Highest band here: Under 1% of homes
No square of 5% or more
Not on this page: coastal erosion, subsidence and shrink-swell ground (the British Geological Survey licenses it), groundwater flooding and reservoir failure.
Hazard risk Grade

Water Orton grades B+ for hazard risk

Flood risk from rivers and the sea, against all UK towns.

Homes at high or medium flood risk (0%)Fewer than 68% of UK towns

The share of homes at high or medium risk from rivers and the sea, ranked against every UK town of 1,000 or more: fewer homes at risk is better. Towns with none at high or medium risk are ordered by their share at low risk, so they don’t all share one score. Surface water and radon aren’t graded: they are described below.

Flood map

Where the water goes in Water Orton

Turn layers on and off. Blue is the risk from rivers and the sea; pink is where heavy rain collects. Both allow for flood defences.

Recorded flood: 2007© OpenStreetMap contributors · EA NaFRA2
HighMediumLowrivers & seaHighMediumLowsurface waterWater Orton’s built-up area

No home in Water Orton is in the high or medium band for rivers or the sea. Surface-water risk is spread across the town, in dips, underpasses and along small streams, which is why more homes are exposed to it.

Rivers and the sea

0% of Water Orton’s homes are at high or medium risk from rivers or the sea

The Environment Agency’s national map, allowing for defences. A further 0.3% are at low risk.

High risk0%of homes · 1 in 30 a year or more0 homes, EA count
Medium risk0%of homes · 1 in 30 to 1 in 1000 homes, EA count
Low risk0.3%of homes · 1 in 100 to 1 in 1,0003 homes, EA count
Where Water Orton sits among 3,735 UK towns
35%NoneWater Orton
23%Under 0.5%
9%0.5–1%
11%1–2%
11%2–5%
5%5–10%
3%10–20%
2%20% +

Share of each UK town’s homes at high or medium risk from rivers and the sea. 35% of UK towns have none.

Towns its size: 132nd of 1,082 from the fewest homes at risk
#TownPeopleHigh or med.
1Sedgefield County Durham4,9790%
2Billinge Merseyside4,9630%
3Lepton West Yorkshire4,9500%
…
130Burtonwood Cheshire3,5040%
131Kirkheaton West Yorkshire3,4920%
132Water Orton Warwickshire3,4840%
133Witham St Hughs Lincolnshire3,4830%
134Thorpe Willoughby North Yorkshire3,4820%
…
1081Chapel St Leonards Lincolnshire3,43566%
1082Gilberdyke East Riding of Yorkshire3,02870%

UK towns of 2,000 to 5,000 people.

The Environment Agency’s Risk of Flooding from Rivers and Sea (NaFRA2, June 2026) counts each postcode’s homes by band; the shares weight those postcodes by Census 2021 households. The EA counts include homes built since 2021.

Surface water

2.6% of Water Orton’s homes are at high or medium risk from surface water

Surface water is rain that falls faster than drains and the ground can take it. It is mapped separately from rivers and the sea, and it is not in the Hazard risk Grade.

Surface water2.6%
Rivers and the sea0%
0%7%14% of homes

About 1.1% of homes are at high risk of surface-water flooding (a 1 in 30 chance or more each year) and 1.5% at medium risk: roughly 40 households. A further 5% face a low risk from surface water. That is more than 35% of UK towns.

~40
households at high or medium risk
5%
of homes at low risk
35%
of UK towns have a smaller share
1,788
addresses read on the map

Our estimate: every address in the town (ONS NSUL) read on the Environment Agency’s Risk of Flooding from Surface Water map (NaFRA2, 2025), each postcode’s share weighted by its Census 2021 households. Neither agency publishes a count of homes for surface water, so treat it as a guide; one street can differ from the next.

Flood history

Water Orton has flooded in 1 recorded year since 2007

Every flood the Environment Agency has mapped inside Water Orton’s built-up area, newest first. The record is fullest for big river floods; small and surface-water floods are often missing.

  1. 2007July 2007: River flooding recorded2 hectares inside today’s built-up area · Water Orton

1 of Water Orton’s households today live inside the outline of a recorded flood.

River levels

The River Tame at Water Orton: highest 3.43 m, in July 1968

The highest level each winter (October to September) at the Environment Agency’s Water Orton gauge, since 1990. The river normally runs between 0.27 m and 1.44 m here.

Highest level each winter, metres
Winter 1990–91: highest 2.30 m · 12 days above the normal rangeWinter 1991–92: highest 2.61 m · 15 days above the normal rangeWinter 1993–94: highest 2.73 m · 13 days above the normal rangeWinter 1994–95: highest 2.25 m · 10 days above the normal rangeWinter 1995–96: highest 2.11 m · 9 days above the normal rangeWinter 1996–97: highest 2.58 m · 17 days above the normal rangeWinter 1997–98: highest 2.41 m · 17 days above the normal rangeWinter 1998–99: highest 2.95 m on 8 August 1999 · 23 days above the normal rangeWinter 1999–00: highest 2.50 m · 22 days above the normal rangeWinter 2000–01: highest 2.59 m · 33 days above the normal rangeWinter 2001–02: highest 2.42 m · 12 days above the normal rangeWinter 2002–03: highest 2.56 m · 14 days above the normal rangeWinter 2003–04: highest 2.21 m · 23 days above the normal rangeWinter 2004–05: highest 2.19 m · 13 days above the normal rangeWinter 2005–06: highest 2.97 m on 12 October 2005 · 18 days above the normal rangeWinter 2006–07: highest 3.04 m on 21 July 2007 · 34 days above the normal rangeWinter 2007–08: highest 2.92 m · 34 days above the normal rangeWinter 2008–09: highest 2.70 m · 24 days above the normal rangeWinter 2009–10: highest 2.22 m · 17 days above the normal rangeWinter 2010–11: highest 2.21 m · 6 days above the normal rangeWinter 2011–12: highest 3.01 m on 24 September 2012 · 13 days above the normal rangeWinter 2012–13: highest 2.65 m · 25 days above the normal rangeWinter 2013–14: highest 2.23 m · 26 days above the normal rangeWinter 2014–15: highest 2.41 m · 13 days above the normal rangeWinter 2015–16: highest 3.09 m on 16 June 2016 · 18 days above the normal rangeWinter 2016–17: highest 2.48 m · 8 days above the normal rangeWinter 2017–18: highest 3.16 m on 27 May 2018 · 14 days above the normal rangeWinter 2018–19: highest 2.98 m on 24 September 2019 · 27 days above the normal rangeWinter 2019–20: highest 2.66 m · 23 days above the normal rangeWinter 2020–21: highest 2.88 m · 20 days above the normal rangeWinter 2021–22: highest 2.73 m · 11 days above the normal rangeWinter 2022–23: highest 2.86 m · 15 days above the normal rangeWinter 2023–24: highest 2.75 m · 35 days above the normal rangeWinter 2024–25: highest 2.71 m · 10 days above the normal rangeWinter 2025–26: highest 2.89 m · 23 days above the normal range’17–18’15–16’06–07Record 3.43 m, 1968Top of normal range
1990–912025–26
The highest days on record
  • 27 May 20183.16 m
  • 16 June 20163.09 m
  • 21 July 20073.04 m
  • 24 September 20123.01 m
  • 24 September 20192.98 m
  • 12 October 20052.97 m

The River Tame has topped its normal range on 647 days since 1990, most in the winters of 2023–24 and 2006–07. By its highest day, the winter of 2025–26 was the 9th-highest of the 35.

Environment Agency Hydrology API, Water Orton (station 4003), daily maximum level; the record and normal range from the EA’s stage scale. Live river levels are on GOV.UK’s Check for flooding.

Flood warnings

No flood warning or alert is in force for Water Orton · 10 warnings in 20 years

The Environment Agency has 1 flood warning area and 1 alert area reaching into the town; warnings since the service began in 2006.

Now: no flood warnings or alerts for Water Orton (checked 8 November 2026, 13:44). Check for flooding on GOV.UK →
Warnings and alerts each year for areas in Water Orton
06
07
08
09
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
Flood warning (flooding expected)Flood alert (flooding possible)

Of the 10 warnings, 10 were for River Tame at Water Orton. 2012 had the most warnings (4); 2024 the most alerts (21).

The most recent warning was on 14 November 2025.

Show the 2 warning and alert areas
AreaKindSince 2006Now
River Tame at Water OrtonWarning area10None
Upper TameAlert area124None

Environment Agency Historic Flood Warnings (first issues only, not updates; “flood watch” counted as an alert before 2011) and the real-time flood-monitoring API. Sign up for free warnings on GOV.UK or call Floodline, 0345 988 1188.

Radon

Water Orton is in the lowest radon band

Radon is a natural radioactive gas from the ground; long exposure raises the risk of lung cancer. The atlas gives the chance that a home in each 1 km square is above the UK action level (200 Bq/m³).

SP1690: Under 1% of homes above the action levelSP1691: Under 1% of homes above the action levelSP1789: Under 1% of homes above the action levelSP1790: Under 1% of homes above the action levelSP1791: Under 1% of homes above the action levelSP1889: Under 1% of homes above the action levelSP1890: Under 1% of homes above the action levelSP1891: Under 1% of homes above the action level© OpenStreetMap contributors · BGS/UKHSA
Under 1%
Share of the town’s area in each band
Under 1% of homes100%

Every 1 km square over Water Orton is in the lowest band: fewer than 1 in 100 homes are expected to be above the action level.

BGS/UKHSA Indicative Atlas of Radon in Great Britain, version 3. Check an address at UKradon.org.

Neighbours

Flood risk in the places around Water Orton

Share of homes at high or medium and at low risk from rivers and the sea. Tap a town for its page.

Curdworth: Hazard risk B−Coleshill: Hazard risk C+Kingsbury: Hazard risk CHurley: Hazard risk ARoyal Sutton Coldfield: Hazard risk B−Wood End (North Warwickshire): Hazard risk AHampton in Arden: Hazard risk B−CurdworthColeshillKingsburyHurleyRoyal Sutton ColdfieldWood End (North Warwickshire)Hampton in ArdenWater Orton
ABCD
TownPeopleHigh or mediumLowHazard
Water Orton3,4840%0.3%B+
Curdworth1,1460.3%0%B−
Coleshill6,7440.4%0.3%C+
Kingsbury3,5551.5%0.4%C
Hurley1,4200%0%A
Royal Sutton Coldfield93,3920.4%0.2%B−
Wood End (North Warwickshire)1,5620%0%A
Hampton in Arden1,8670.1%0.7%B−

Kingsbury, 4.2 miles north-east, has the most homes at risk around Water Orton (1.5% at high or medium). Hurley and Wood End (North Warwickshire) have none.

Be ready

Get ready for what Water Orton faces

Free warnings, what to do in a cloudburst, and what to check before you move.

Get the warnings
  • Sign up free for Environment Agency flood warnings by text, call or email.
  • Floodline: 0345 988 1188, 24 hours.
  • Water Orton’s warning areas include River Tame at Water Orton.
Sign up ↗
In a cloudburst
  • Surface water rises in minutes, often with no warning issued: stay out of underpasses and dips.
  • Keep the gullies and drains outside your home clear of leaves.
  • Report a blocked road drain to the council.
When the river rises
  • Never walk or drive through floodwater: 30 cm of moving water can float a car.
  • Move valuables, papers and medicines upstairs.
  • Turn off gas, electricity and water if you’re told to.
Before you buy or rent in Water Orton
  • Check the address on GOV.UK’s long-term flood risk service: it gives rivers and sea and surface water separately.
  • Ask whether the home has flooded or had a flood insurance claim; the TA6 property form asks the seller.
  • Homes built before 2009 can get flood cover through Flood Re, the government-backed scheme; newer homes can’t.
How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

  • Defences are counted. Both agencies’ maps allow for flood defences and the chance they are overtopped or fail, so a town behind a defence scheme can show few homes at high risk and many at low risk.
  • Surface water is our estimate. Neither agency publishes a count of homes at risk from surface water, so we read each address on the map. A flat on a hill and a basement in a dip can share a postcode.
  • Past floods are what was recorded. The flood outlines come from surveys, aerial photographs and reports; many small floods, and most surface-water floods, were never mapped.
  • One town, many streets. Risk is street by street. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s long-term flood risk service before you buy or rent.

Check the long-term flood risk for an address on GOV.UK →

Questions about flooding and hazards in Water Orton

Does Water Orton flood?

The last flood the Environment Agency recorded inside the town was in July 2007. 0% of homes are at high or medium risk from rivers and the sea on the Environment Agency’s maps, which allow for flood defences. About 2.6% of homes are at high or medium risk from surface water, when heavy rain overwhelms the drains. Water Orton grades B+ for hazard risk against UK towns.

Which parts of Water Orton are at risk of flooding?

From rivers and the sea, the places the Environment Agency warns directly: River Tame at Water Orton. Surface water can collect in low spots anywhere in the town. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s long-term flood risk service.

When did Water Orton last flood?

The recorded flood outlines inside the town run from 2007 to 2007 (1 years); the largest was in 2007. Flood warnings have been issued for parts of the town since 2006, most recently on 14 November 2025.

Is Water Orton at risk of surface water flooding?

About 1.1% of homes are at high risk and 1.5% at medium risk from surface water, against 0% at high or medium risk from rivers and the sea. Surface water floods come with little warning, and the agencies don’t issue warnings for them.

Is radon a problem in Water Orton?

Not by the atlas: every 1 km square over Water Orton is in the lowest band, where fewer than 1 in 100 homes are expected to be above the action level.

Are there flood warnings in Water Orton now?

No flood warning or alert was in force near Water Orton at 8 November 2026, 13:44. Live warnings are on GOV.UK’s Check for flooding service and Floodline, 0345 988 1188.

Contains Environment Agency information © Environment Agency and/or database right 2026. Contains British Geological Survey materials © UKRI 2026.

Sources: Environment Agency Risk of Flooding from Rivers and Sea, postcodes in areas at risk (June 2026); Natural Resources Wales Flood Risk Assessment Wales (May 2026); ONS Census 2021 households by postcode · Environment Agency Risk of Flooding from Surface Water (NaFRA2, 2025) and Natural Resources Wales Flood Risk Assessment Wales surface water and small watercourses, read at every address (ONS National Statistics UPRN Lookup, September 2026) and weighted by Census 2021 households by postcode · Environment Agency Recorded Flood Outlines and Natural Resources Wales historic flood map, inside the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary · Environment Agency Hydrology API (daily maximum river level) and flood-monitoring stage scales · Environment Agency real-time flood-monitoring API · Environment Agency Historic Flood Warnings (January 2006 to June 2026) and flood warning and alert areas · BGS/UKHSA Indicative Atlas of Radon in Great Britain, version 3, by 1 km square · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.