Skip to content

Flooding turns forever home into a 'nightmare'

Listen to Patricia and Peter on BBC Sounds

An elderly couple's home has been flooded 20 times since they bought it as their "forever home" in 2021.

Peter and Patricia Clarke, who moved to the property in Swindon from Cornwall three years ago, said a pond on council land near their home regularly overflowed and poured into their back garden.

Mrs Clarke, 76, has dug ditches and built a DIY dam in an attempt to protect the property.

Swindon Borough Council said they were "sympathetic" but had "a number of sites across the borough that need their attention".

Extensive flooding outside Mr and Mrs Clarke's back gate
Flood water regularly flows into Mr and Mrs Clarke's garden and garage and, on occasion, their conservatory

Mr and Mrs Clarke moved to Swindon to be closer to Mrs Clarke's son.

"We thought this was going to be our forever home," said Mr Clarke, 74.

The flooding had left the couple "upset, disappointed and angry", he added.

Due to a growing abdominal aortic aneurysm, Mr Clarke said he was unable to help Mrs Clarke with managing the flooding.

"Trish is struggling," he said. "I feel embarrassed that I can't help her."

Patricia Clarke standing on the dam she has built, with one foot on a pile of vegetation and the other foot on sandbags
Patricia Clarke, 76, is building a dam in an attempt to protect the property

The flooding has left Mrs Clarke with anxiety.

"I do take anxiety tablets," she said. "When I go to bed at night and it's raining, I don't sleep.

"I'm up and down, up and down - we're living in a nightmare."

Mrs Clarke said Swindon Borough Council had told her it hoped to start work on drainage for the pond early next year.

She said: "The weather's getting worse and we're getting more and more flooded."

Flood water at the front of the property seeping into the garage
Flooding travels from the back garden to the front and into the garage

A Swindon Borough Council spokesperson said they were "incredibly sympathetic" towards the couple.

"We are looking at ways we can mitigate the problems affecting Mrs Clarke," said the spokesperson, "but we also have a number of other sites across the borough that also require our attention.

"In the meantime, we'll assist where we can by providing sandbags and support when needed and we would encourage Mrs Clarke to look at what she can do herself, from within her own property boundary, to help prevent flooding."

Mr Clarke sitting in an armchair looking at a weather app with Disney the dog staring up at him
Flooding has cost the couple £6,000 since they moved into the property

Mr and Mrs Clarke have been unable to sell the property because of the flooding issues and they have spent £6,000 since moving in on drying the property, maintenance and flood defences.

The couple said the council had suggested building a wall inside their back garden fence but Mr and Mrs Clarke said they could not afford to do this.

Similar stories