FLOOD advisors have been in Tenbury but the prospects of a proper defence scheme for the town seems to be as far away as ever.

Harriett Baldwin, whose West Worcestershire constituency includes Tenbury, has pledged to try to find a solution to the threat.

Two years ago she led a public meeting in the town attended by the Environment Agency but since then there has been no progress.

This is despite concerns from people like Mark Willis, recently elected for a third term as Mayor, who says that it is a question of when and not if a major flood comes to Tenbury again.

A team of experts from the Flood Advisory Service has visited Tenbury to meet residents and business owners.

The visit was sponsored by Malvern Hills District Council, Worcestershire County Council, West Mercia Police, the West Minster Resilience Forum and the Environment Agency.

However, whilst it was able to offer advice on how to limit the damage caused by a flood this falls way short of full flood protection.

These mitigating measures include installing items such as flood gates and raising the height of plugs and electrical circuits inside a property.

But a flood prevention scheme would require major engineering work in the town and cost at least £5 million.

Tenbury was last hit by serious flooding in 2007 when public toilets in Market Street were washed away and many businesses were closed for many months.

“I continue to work with the town council and other parties to try and press forward on a broader strategic plan for the whole town,” said Harriett Baldwin.

“We are still waiting to hear from Tesco regarding news on their store construction and the enhanced flood defences along that wall which is part of the planning agreement.

“In the meantime, I would encourage as many individual property owners and tenants as possible to take appropriate steps to protect themselves for when flooding next hits the town.”

The problem for Tenbury is that any spend by the Environment Agency on flood defences has to meet strict rules set by the Government.

This involves a cost benefit analysis in which the money needed for flood defences has to be set against a calculation of the benefits.

In the case of Tenbury the experts say that the cost that was estimated at £5 million nearly 10 years ago cannot be justified.

Other options such as lowering the bed of the River Teme or creating storage areas for flood water up stream of Tenbury have been ruled out on the grounds of cost and that they are not practical.

Therefore, the solution would require the building of flood walls and this has generated some concern that these would spoil the look of the town and its tourism potential.

One possibility might be to build a flood wall in sections as and when money becomes available but experts have warned that such an approach might have the effect of making problems better in one part of the town but at the expense of others.