United Utilities has announced a £30 million investment programme aimed at increasing Liverpool’s resilience to heavy rainfall through the wider adoption of nature-based water management solutions.
The initiative, scheduled for delivery by 2030, will introduce a range of blue-green infrastructure measures designed to capture and retain rainwater close to where it falls. Planned interventions include rain gardens, green roofs, urban wetlands and redesigned playgrounds that can absorb and store water, reducing runoff entering the sewer system.
We recognise the value of water as a resource and the importance of working with rainfall and runoff, rather than against it
The programme seeks to alleviate pressure on Liverpool’s combined sewer network, where around 85% of sewers carry both wastewater and rainwater. By slowing surface water flows, the measures are expected to help reduce flood risk, improve water quality and lessen the need for storm overflow operations during periods of intense rainfall.
Speaking at the Flood and Coast Conference in Liverpool, United Utilities CEO Louise Beardmore said: “To tackle the challenges of climate change, we need to make our urban areas more spongy. We recognise the value of water as a resource and the importance of working with rainfall and runoff, rather than against it – slowing the flow, reducing flooding, and creating greener, more resilient places for our communities.”
The investment builds on a partnership established last year between United Utilities, the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and the Mersey Rivers Trust to address flooding, sewage discharges and river health.
Several projects are already underway. In Deysbrook, the utility is collaborating with Alder Hey Hospital on a £536,000 scheme that redirects rainwater away from combined sewers through new surface water drainage infrastructure. More than 700 rainwater-retaining planters have also been distributed to residents.
In addition, United Utilities is working with organisations including Liverpool ONE to introduce rain gardens, while its Future Leaders of Water programme has supported flood-prone schools in adopting greener landscapes.
“With more intense rainfall, we need to manage rain where it falls. If we can do that, we can protect rivers, reduce flood risk and create places that people are proud to live in,” Beardmore said.
