WHEN SIGNING PLEASE ENSURE YOU CORRECT YOUR LOCATION. Dorset Council will not count your signature if you appear to be from outside Dorset. This website often auto-fills your location incorrectly. THIS WEBSITE WILL ALSO ASK YOU TO CONFIRM YOUR SIGNATURE VIA EMAIL, PLEASE COMPLETE THIS IMPORTANT STAGE. MANY THANKS.

"The level of silt appears to be several feet above the level of the drains (from Radipole Park)... simply dredging the silt from the road drainage pipes will only provide a short term solution as sediment continues to be washed into the lake from the Wey catchment which is likely to eventually result in the flood water storage capacity of the lake being lost, resulting in much greater flood risk" - RSPB Site Manager who supports dredging and/or other mitigation of flooding from the lake.

THE FLOODING ISSUE IS COMPLEX AND NEEDS TO BE PRIORITISED BY ALL STAKEHOLDERS TO FIND AN URGENT SOLUTION.

My name is Matt Bell and I am a town councillor for the Wey Valley Ward at the time of writing (update: following 2024 local elections I am now town councillor for Lodmoor and Dorset councillor for Radipole). I also live near Radipole Park and regularly use its amenities with my young family. There is a persistent problem with flooding in Radipole Park and the Swannery area of the town. This puts homes, amenities, sports clubs, transport routes, businesses and the redeveloped Radipole Park and Gardens (cost of £1.2 million) at potential risk. I am trying to do all I can to protect those facilities and ask that Dorset residents sign this petition to make our voices heard. I need 5000 signatures from Dorset residents to be able to take this to Dorset Council for consideration and prioritisation.

I have been prompted to start this petition due to communication I have had with well-meaning key stakeholders with responsibility for maintaining Radipole Lake. Radipole Lake is subject to a Water Level Management Plan. This means that any dredging, silt removal and maintenance has to be agreed between Dorset Council, The Environment Agency, Natural England and the RSPB. I have been in correspondence with several key individuals and organisations and there seems to be a lack of clarity about who is responsible for the complex issues of maintenance of drainage and management of water levels. There is seemingly little or no record of who has been, or should have been, removing silt from the drainage outlets from beneath Radipole Park. The main channel through the lake is silting up and potentially reducing floodwater storage capacity, however interactions with other water levels in the area make the situation complex. There is also a need to investigate whether the penstocks at Westham Bridge can be adjusted to allow water to exit the lake or not. We cannot go on as we are.  The flooding shown in the photo has taken place following recent rains, please remember we were only subject to a yellow weather warning across the River Wey catchment area. How bad will the flooding be when we experience amber or red rainfall events in future?!

WE NEED ALL STAKEHOLDERS TO PRIORITISE THE IMMEDIATE DREDGING AND/OR REMOVAL OF SILT FROM RADIPOLE LAKE AND THE RIVER WEY TO INCREASE FLOOD WATER STORAGE CAPACITY AND DRAINAGE FROM RADIPOLE PARK AND SURROUNDING AREAS or, if more effective, to use other methods to mitigate the flooding! A consistent and effective management programme then needs to be followed in future. PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION IF YOU AGREE FLOOD MANAGEMENT NEEDS TO BE PRIORITISED AND ACTIONED URGENTLY BY ALL PARTIES INVOLVED IN THE MANAGEMENT OF RADIPOLE LAKE/RIVER WEY AND YOU ARE A DORSET RESIDENT. I seek to raise awareness of the flooding problem and to share the community's desire to see urgent and positive action taken to reduce flooding. 

If you would like to view more photographic evidence of flooding in the area please search for Cllr Matt Bell on Facebook.