THE latest round of flooding has heightened concerns in both Ludlow and Tenbury.

This time both towns and the surrounding areas came off relatively lightly.

There was some flooding of farmland and land alongside rivers and streams as well as some roads. Sandbags were also deployed.

In Tenbury there were serious concerns as river levels rose and people braced themselves for a possible repeat of the devastation of February last year.

But in the end it came nothing close to that although the river in the vicinity of the Teme Bridge was high and for a time Market Street was closed.

A more serious problem was water that appeared to be coming up through the drains.

Some cellars were flooded and have had to be pumped out.

Groundwater is one of the issues being looked at by the Environment Agency as they prepare for a flood defence scheme where construction is intended to start in 2022.

The latest scare came as the Environment Agency consults with people and businesses in Tenbury.

But the Environment Agency has warned that whilst it will listen to and wants to respond to local wishes the budget is limited and too many changes could make it not viable.

The basis of the scheme will be flood walls and embankments around the town rather than creating flood storage upstream.

Ludlow missed out on a package of funding for flood defences announced by the Government last year.

A flood group has been reconvened to campaign for effective flood defence for the town.

The frequency of flooding has been increasing and new schemes, like the one being designed in Tenbury, take account of the impact of climate change.

Flooding in Ludlow and Tenbury and on the River Seven often follows heavy rainfall in the Welsh Hills.