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Streets of the town 3 - Walsall, West MidlandsPhoto: Martin Richard Phelan · CC BY-SA 2.0
C+Hazard risk Grade
Flood & hazards in Walsall · Environment Agency

Heavy rain is Walsall’s main flood risk: 4.4% of homes, against 0.8% from rivers or the sea

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. Walsall’s Hazard risk Grade is C+: #26 of 35 in West Midlands.

4flood warnings since 2006100%in a radon Affected Area
In brief

What stands out about Walsall’s hazards

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

Rain, more than the river4.4% of homes sit where heavy rain can flood the streets, against 0.8% at risk from rivers and the sea.The River Tame ran its 5th-highest in November 20243.37 m at Bescot on 24 November 2024, 14 cm under the record set in 2007.4 flood warnings since 2006For the parts of Walsall the Environment Agency warns directly; the most recent on 20 October 2023.Radon in parts50% of the town is in 1 km squares where 5% or more of homes may be above the radon action level.
By hazard

What Walsall faces

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

Rivers and the sea

0.8%of homes at high or medium risk
More than the typical UK town · more than 64% of towns
196 homes by the EA’s own count

Surface water

4.4%of homes at high or medium risk
More than 61% of UK towns
Rivers and sea: 0.8%

The River Tame

2.94 mhighest in winter 2025–26 at Bescot
15th-highest of 36 winters
Record 3.51 m, June 2007

Flood warnings

4flood warnings since 2006
124 flood alerts for the wider area
Last warning 20 October 2023

Radon

100%of the town in a radon Affected Area
Highest band here: 5–10% of homes
50% in squares 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

Walsall grades C+ for hazard risk

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

Homes at high or medium flood risk (0.8%)Fewer than 36% 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 Walsall

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.

© OpenStreetMap contributors · EA NaFRA2
HighMediumLowrivers & seaHighMediumLowsurface waterWalsall’s built-up area

The river and sea risk follows the River Tame and the Ford Brook. 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

0.8% of Walsall’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 riskunder 0.1%of homes · 1 in 30 a year or more12 homes, EA count
Medium risk0.7%of homes · 1 in 30 to 1 in 100184 homes, EA count
Low risk0.3%of homes · 1 in 100 to 1 in 1,00089 homes, EA count
Where Walsall sits among 3,735 UK towns
35%None
23%Under 0.5%
9%0.5–1%Walsall
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; Walsall has more than 64% of towns.

Towns its size: 69th of 108 from the fewest homes at risk
#TownPeopleHigh or med.
1Dudley West Midlands64,2770%
2Smethwick West Midlands56,3430%
3Bootle Merseyside53,7220%
…
67Aylesbury Buckinghamshire87,9660.8%
68Newcastle-under-Lyme Staffordshire76,5110.8%
69Walsall West Midlands70,7770.8%
70Guildford Surrey77,8700.8%
71Margate Kent63,3150.8%
…
107Maidenhead Berkshire67,3916%
108Grimsby Lincolnshire85,9158.9%

UK towns of 50,000 to 99,000 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

Heavy rain puts about 5.8 times as many Walsall homes at risk as rivers and the sea do

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 water4.4%
Rivers and the sea0.8%
0%7%14% of homes

About 2.3% of homes are at high risk of surface-water flooding (a 1 in 30 chance or more each year) and 2.1% at medium risk: roughly 1,140 households. A further 7% face a low risk from surface water. That is more than 61% of UK towns.

~1,140
households at high or medium risk
7%
of homes at low risk
61%
of UK towns have a smaller share
33,575
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.

River levels

The River Tame in November 2024 rose to its 5th-highest level since 1990

The highest level each winter (October to September) at the Environment Agency’s Bescot gauge, since 1990. The river normally runs between 0.32 m and 1.25 m here.

Highest level each winter, metres
Winter 1990–91: highest 2.57 m · 53 days above the normal rangeWinter 1991–92: highest 2.81 m · 57 days above the normal rangeWinter 1992–93: highest 2.97 m · 71 days above the normal rangeWinter 1993–94: highest 3.05 m · 84 days above the normal rangeWinter 1994–95: highest 2.28 m · 71 days above the normal rangeWinter 1995–96: highest 2.28 m · 35 days above the normal rangeWinter 1996–97: highest 2.48 m · 47 days above the normal rangeWinter 1997–98: highest 2.54 m · 52 days above the normal rangeWinter 1998–99: highest 3.39 m on 8 August 1999 · 62 days above the normal rangeWinter 1999–00: highest 2.77 m · 74 days above the normal rangeWinter 2000–01: highest 2.94 m · 85 days above the normal rangeWinter 2001–02: highest 2.35 m · 58 days above the normal rangeWinter 2002–03: highest 2.88 m · 59 days above the normal rangeWinter 2003–04: highest 2.73 m · 66 days above the normal rangeWinter 2004–05: highest 2.71 m · 45 days above the normal rangeWinter 2005–06: highest 2.88 m · 44 days above the normal rangeWinter 2006–07: highest 3.51 m on 15 June 2007 · 89 days above the normal rangeWinter 2007–08: highest 2.67 m · 94 days above the normal rangeWinter 2008–09: highest 2.94 m · 104 days above the normal rangeWinter 2009–10: highest 2.66 m · 58 days above the normal rangeWinter 2010–11: highest 2.48 m · 25 days above the normal rangeWinter 2011–12: highest 3.05 m · 66 days above the normal rangeWinter 2012–13: highest 3.11 m on 28 July 2013 · 84 days above the normal rangeWinter 2013–14: highest 2.77 m · 109 days above the normal rangeWinter 2014–15: highest 2.80 m · 81 days above the normal rangeWinter 2015–16: highest 3.03 m · 82 days above the normal rangeWinter 2016–17: highest 2.65 m · 65 days above the normal rangeWinter 2017–18: highest 3.45 m on 27 May 2018 · 66 days above the normal rangeWinter 2018–19: highest 2.89 m · 69 days above the normal rangeWinter 2019–20: highest 3.23 m on 16 February 2020 · 92 days above the normal rangeWinter 2020–21: highest 2.94 m · 89 days above the normal rangeWinter 2021–22: highest 3.10 m · 69 days above the normal rangeWinter 2022–23: highest 3.43 m on 23 October 2022 · 95 days above the normal rangeWinter 2023–24: highest 3.24 m on 20 October 2023 · 107 days above the normal rangeWinter 2024–25: highest 3.37 m on 24 November 2024 · 79 days above the normal rangeWinter 2025–26: highest 2.94 m · 83 days above the normal range’06–07’17–18’22–23Record 3.51 m, 2007Top of normal range
1990–912025–26
The highest days on record
  • 15 June 20073.51 m
  • 27 May 20183.45 m
  • 23 October 20223.43 m
  • 8 August 19993.39 m
  • 24 November 20243.37 m
  • 20 October 20233.24 m

The River Tame has topped its normal range on 2,569 days since 1990, most in the winters of 2013–14 and 2023–24. By its highest day, the winter of 2025–26 was the 15th-highest of the 36.

Environment Agency Hydrology API, Bescot (station 4081), 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 Walsall · 4 warnings in 20 years

The Environment Agency has 4 flood warning areas and 1 alert area reaching into the town; warnings since the service began in 2006.

Now: no flood warnings or alerts for Walsall (checked 6 November 2026, 21:29). Check for flooding on GOV.UK →
Warnings and alerts each year for areas in Walsall
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 4 warnings, 2 were for River Tame at Bescot and 1 for Ford Brook at Walsall. 2018 had the most warnings (2); 2024 the most alerts (21).

The most recent warning was on 20 October 2023.

Show the 5 warning and alert areas
AreaKindSince 2006Now
River Tame at BescotWarning area2None
Ford Brook at BescotWarning area1None
Ford Brook at WalsallWarning area1None
River Tame at WednesburyWarning area0None
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

Parts of Walsall are in radon Affected Areas, up to the 5–10% 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).

SO9996: 1–3% of homes above the action levelSO9997: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSO9998: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSO9999: 3–5% of homes above the action levelSP0096: 1–3% of homes above the action levelSP0097: 1–3% of homes above the action levelSP0098: 1–3% of homes above the action levelSP0099: 3–5% of homes above the action levelSP0195: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSP0196: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSP0197: 1–3% of homes above the action levelSP0198: 1–3% of homes above the action levelSP0199: 3–5% of homes above the action levelSP0295: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSP0296: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSP0297: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSP0298: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSP0299: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSK0200: Under 1% of homes above the action levelSP0395: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSP0396: 1–3% of homes above the action levelSP0397: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSP0398: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSP0399: 1–3% of homes above the action levelSP0496: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSP0497: 5–10% of homes above the action levelSP0498: 5–10% of homes above the action level© OpenStreetMap contributors · BGS/UKHSA
1–3%3–5%5–10%
Share of the town’s area in each band
1–3% of homes38%
3–5% of homes13%
5–10% of homes50%

100% of Walsall’s built-up area is in a radon Affected Area (1% of homes or more above the action level), and 50% in squares of 5% or more, mostly on the south-east side of the town.

The squares are indicative: each takes the highest band found anywhere inside it, so most homes in a coloured square are below it. Only a three-month test in the home gives a real answer.

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

Neighbours

Flood risk in the places around Walsall

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

Wednesbury: Hazard risk CDarlaston: Hazard risk B+Rushall and Shelfield: Hazard risk CBloxwich: Hazard risk B+Willenhall: Hazard risk CWest Bromwich: Hazard risk B−Aldridge: Hazard risk AWednesburyDarlastonRushall and ShelfieldBloxwichWillenhallWest BromwichAldridgeWalsall
ABCD
TownPeopleHigh or mediumLowHazard
Walsall70,7770.8%0.3%C+
Wednesbury20,3210.9%1.1%C
Darlaston21,5410%under 0.1%B+
Rushall and Shelfield12,8441.1%0.9%C
Bloxwich51,8910%1%B+
Willenhall49,5821.5%2.3%C
West Bromwich103,0990.2%1.1%B−
Aldridge15,8270%0%A

Willenhall, 2.8 miles north-west, has the most homes at risk around Walsall (1.5% at high or medium). Darlaston, Bloxwich and Aldridge have none.

Be ready

Get ready for what Walsall 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.
  • Walsall’s warning areas include Ford Brook at Walsall and Ford Brook at Bescot.
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.
Radon
  • Test over three months, in a living room and a bedroom.
  • Above 200 Bq/m³, a small sump and fan usually fixes it.
  • New homes in radon areas are built with protection: basic from 3%, full from 10%.
UKradon ↗
Before you buy or rent in Walsall
  • 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.
  • Check radon for the address on UKradon.org (a small fee) or ask the seller for a test result.
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.
  • 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 Walsall

Does Walsall flood?

0.8% 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 4.4% of homes are at high or medium risk from surface water, when heavy rain overwhelms the drains. Walsall grades C+ for hazard risk against UK towns.

Which parts of Walsall are at risk of flooding?

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

Is Walsall at risk of surface water flooding?

About 2.3% of homes are at high risk and 2.1% at medium risk from surface water, against 0.8% 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 Walsall?

100% of the town’s built-up area is in a radon Affected Area on the BGS/UKHSA atlas, and 50% is in 1 km squares where 5% or more of homes may be above the action level. Most homes are below it; a three-month test is the only way to know.

Are there flood warnings in Walsall now?

No flood warning or alert was in force near Walsall at 6 November 2026, 21:29. 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 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.