This record is for Approval for Access product AfA345.
The Environment Agency's (EA) Spatial Flood defences layer is the only comprehensive and up-to-date dataset in England that shows flood defences currently owned, managed or inspected by the EA.
Flood defences can be structures, buildings or parts of buildings. Typically these are earth banks, stone and concrete walls, or sheet-piling that is used to prevent or control the extent of flooding.
A defence is any asset that provides flood defence or coastal protection functions. This includes both man-made and natural defences. Natural defences may include man-made elements to make them more effective or protect them from erosion.
Normally a number of assets will be used together to manage the risk in a particular area, working in combination within a risk management system.
PLEASE NOTE: This data is updated daily. This is a large dataset and depending on the chosen download format, it may take 7-8 minutes to download the full national dataset. Attribution statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2020. All rights reserved.