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Grids and gullies

We have over 86,650 grids (sometimes called gullies) across the borough. These are at the edge of the kerb and take the water to the drains underneath.

How do grid/gullies work?

Every grid/gully has a ‘pot’ underneath. This is designed to collect as much silt and waste as possible to minimise the risk of a blockage. Our teams jet wash and cleanse all the grids/gullies on our road network to ensure that the collection of waste is removed so water can flow freely.

When we have heavy rain the drainage system it's connected to may be full. This can be part of the water companies waste water system, a nearby ditch or watercourse.

Once the silt and waste has been removed the pot is refilled with clean water to ensure the connection is flowing. The water level will remain at the height of the outlet pipe in the drain. This is why you can see some level of water inside it does not always mean it is full or blocked.

How often are they cleaned?

All highway gullies have been inspected and their current condition and silt levels have been recorded. This information has been used to help us address those gullies that are in a higher flooding risk category and therefore need emptying more frequently than those that sit in a lower risk area.

Our risk-based approach to gully cleansing has been designed over a two-year period to cleanse all assets. It has taken into consideration current gully silt levels, safety risk priority, Environment Agency flooding zones and will be reviewed on a regular basis.

Our 2023 programme

All dates are subject to change.

Please consider if there has been any recent heavy rain and wait a short period of time before reporting a grid/gully that appears to be blocked or overflowing. Sometimes our grids/gullies can't drain the water away quick enough and will appear to be overflowing or bubbling up. This will usually drain away on it's own.

Report a blocked grid/gully

Help us

If you notice that a gully on your street has become blocked by leaves which can be easily brushed away, without putting yourself or others at risk, please brush the blockage to one side.

Gather up the leaves and dispose of them in the same way you would dispose of leaves from your household gutters and drains. Clearing the leaves regularly makes sure the water can flow freely into the drain next time we get heavy rain.

I've already reported an issue

You can check the progress of the report using our status checker. You can also use this to provide an update.