Your home has flooded somewhere in Oxfordshire. Here is who is responsible, what the proposed council shake-up means for your flood, the Section 19 reports the county has published, and what to do next — from an independent consultancy that has been through the process itself.
Flooding in Oxfordshire rarely belongs to one organisation. Knowing which one owns the problem is the difference between a complaint that goes nowhere and one that has to be answered.
Not sure which authority covers your address? Use our flood contacts finder.
On 16 July 2026 the government confirmed its decision to replace Oxfordshire’s county and district councils with three new unitary councils from 1 April 2028. On 7 September 2026 it paused that decision, along with decisions in other areas, for review following legal advice, and the May 2027 local elections will use the existing council boundaries. The three councils proposed were:
If the plan goes ahead, each new unitary council is expected to become the Lead Local Flood Authority for its own area. Until then, and while the review continues, Oxfordshire County Council keeps the Section 19 duty and remains the body to report to.
Keeping a case alive through that kind of handover is exactly the sort of sustained escalation RISE does. In one case, it took Section 19 evidence through to more than £2m of completed council-funded works. See the evidence.
Oxfordshire County Council publishes its own thresholds for a formal Section 19 investigation. In summary, it looks at floods where:
Where flooding doesn’t meet these thresholds, the council says it or its partners will still look into the cause where possible — but it can’t cover every instance, and formal investigations take priority.
If your area has flooded before, a published report may already name the cause and the responsible bodies. That is valuable evidence for your claim, your rebuild and any escalation. Most follow the storms of September and November 2024. Search by town, village or street.
64 reports
No published report for that place. That doesn’t mean your flood wasn’t significant — it may never have been formally reported. A Section 19 Case Assessment will tell you where you stand.
Reports are hosted by Oxfordshire County Council on the Oxfordshire Flood Toolkit, which also lists the most recent ones. Years shown are the year of the flood event. List checked in September 2026. Reports are added as the council publishes them.
Call 999 if anyone is at risk. Turn off electricity at the mains only if you can do so safely and dry.
Photograph and video the water level, its route into the property, and any blocked drains, gullies or culverts nearby. Note times. This evidence disappears within hours.
Use the council’s report a flood form for surface water, groundwater and small watercourse flooding (the council aims to reply within 21 days). Report sewer, main river and highway drain problems to the body responsible. Ask neighbours to do the same. Reported floods are the only ones the council can count.
Decisions in the first 72 hours shape the whole recovery. A free 30-minute consultation costs nothing.
Your Section 19 Case Assessment reaches your inbox within 15 minutes and sets out your authority, the thresholds that apply and your next moves.
Want the full step-by-step, including safety, cleaning, drying and your health? Read What to Do After a Flood. Free, no sign-up.
RISE works with homeowners throughout the county, including Oxford, Banbury, Bicester, Witney, Abingdon, Didcot, Kidlington, Wantage, Thame, Henley-on-Thames, Wallingford, Chipping Norton, Carterton, Eynsham and Woodstock. For background on flooding across the county, read our article Oxfordshire on the Frontline of UK Flooding. Also see our services, our Section 19 reference manual, and our page on flood recovery in Buckinghamshire.
Oxfordshire County Council, as the Lead Local Flood Authority. Under Section 19 of the Flood and Water Management Act 2010 it must investigate floods to the extent it considers necessary or appropriate. It publishes its reports on the Oxfordshire Flood Toolkit.
The government confirmed in July 2026 that Oxfordshire's county and district councils would be replaced by three unitary councils on 1 April 2028: Greater Oxford, Northern Oxfordshire, and Ridgeway (which also takes in West Berkshire). On 7 September 2026 it paused that decision for review following legal advice. Until it is settled, Oxfordshire County Council remains the Lead Local Flood Authority. If the plan goes ahead, each new unitary council is expected to become the flood authority for its own area, so any investigation or recommendation still open in 2028 would pass to a new body.
It depends on scale. Oxfordshire's thresholds include five or more homes or businesses flooded internally within one square kilometre, two or more business premises, one property flooded for a week or longer, flooded critical infrastructure, or a critical road or rail route impassable for 24 hours. Report every internal flood, because unreported floods can't count towards the thresholds.
No. The council states that the Act allows it to make recommendations but does not give it the powers or funding to carry them all out, or to compel others to. Each responsible body decides for itself whether to act. Getting recommendations delivered usually takes sustained, evidence-led escalation.
Report it anyway, and ask neighbours to report theirs, since several reports can add up to a qualifying event. The council says it will still look into the cause where it can, though it cannot cover every case. A RISE Section 19 Case Assessment sets out the strongest route for your situation.
Your sewerage company. Sewerage boundaries don't follow county lines, so check which company serves your postcode using the water and sewerage company lookup on the Water UK site before reporting.
No obligation. No jargon. By the end of the call you will have a clear view of your options — whether you engage RISE or not.
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